Julian Sullivan

FOR the past three years the Victoria Racing Club’s offices have been at the top of the famous “straight six” course at Flemington. The setting provides a commanding, panoramic view over the green stretches of one of the world’s best racecourses - the training stables to the left, the wetlands to the right, the imposing grandstands further along and, most important of all, the winning post in the distance. It is one of the most magnificent scenes anywhere in the world of racing and it is one that Julian Sullivan can look at any time of his working day. “I’d say for anyone who loves racing I have the best office in Melbourne,” he said. “I can look directly down the straight and take in all the grandeur that Flemington provides at a glance. It is quite unique.” Julian is also quite unique, in his own right. A 31-year veteran at the VRC, he has been the club’s General Manager-Membership Services for the past 12 years.

During that time he has overseen a growth in membership numbers from slightly more than 10,000 to 28,000 and an increase in the revenue generated from $4.37m in 1997 to nearly $22m last year: “We have a committed, enthusiastic and vibrant team. I look for people who are prepared to work as a team, are pro-active and have a good knowledge of the industry. It’s a system that works well.” However what makes Julian unique is that while establishing himself as one of the nation’s senior racing administrators he has also become a successful breeder. In partnership with his wife, Julie, he has put together a boutique breeding operation developed around a handful of quality broodmares whose progeny regularly bring the Sullivans healthy returns when sold as yearlings.

“In a way I have been ideally placed to develop my breeding interests,” he said. “I believe we are in an industry where experience, knowledge and networks are everything. In that regard I’ve been fortunate to have access to the best people in the business and have had the opportunity to learn from them. Also, over my years on the track at Flemington, I’ve got to know most of the trainers, and through that I’ve come to know what they like in a horse and their views on stallions. From my point of view racing is a sexy industry and buyers want sexy horses, such as new, exciting stallions.

“I have learned over the years, sometimes the hard way, that you have to breed what the market wants. That obviously includes well-conformed types that will go early. Another key factor is that to ensure success stallions need to be at studs where there is a very strong marketing strategy which underpins their horses, because it is a very competitive business.” It is a business that has virtually dominated his life, for Julian was born in Melbourne in 1958, into a horse mad and racing family. His mother Lois, who had begun riding as a six year-old, competed regularly and successfully in shows, while her brother Jack McCormick was an equestrian judge.

“A cousin Anthony McCormick represented Australia in show jumping, so from my earliest days I was entrenched in the horse world. Added to that my paternal grandmother was related to John Wren, who was well known in the racing industry.” Regarded as a man ahead of his time, Wren operated an illegal totalisator in Melbourne in the early part of the 20th century as well as conducting meetings at his proprietary racecourses. Among the horses he raced was Murmur, a heavily backed winner of the Caulfield Cup in 1904. However Wren repeatedly incurred the wrath of racing’s officialdom: “At one stage the VRC rejected John Wren’s entries for his horses, which is rather ironic given I have now worked for the club for more than 30 years.” Julian’s father Kevin was an avid racegoer, and from Julian’s youngest days would fly the family to the carnivals in Sydney and Adelaide each year: “My interest in racing began when I started going to the races with my father. I was about 10 years-old at that stage. The first time I ever went to the races with my father, ironically as it turned out, was at Flemington. He placed two bets for me and they both won . . . so at that point I was completely sold on racing and I have been ever since. As I was developing my passion for racing, and in particular breeding, I was reading any books about racing or breeding I could find, rather than my school books.” His interest further intensified during his secondary school years at Melbourne’s Xavier College, which is notable for producing some of Victoria’s best-known racing identities including Lloyd Williams.

“Coincidentally, Tony O’Driscoll who is the senior financial controller at Coolmore, was in the same year as me at Xavier,” Julian said. “Like most Catholic schools there was a major focus on all sports, including racing. I was part of a Racing Club at Xavier and each month we would hold a meeting on Fridays when we would invite trainers, jockeys and people involved in racing as guest speakers. I also remember that the economics class was made more interesting because the teacher would use racing and punting analogies to explain the theories of supply and demand.”
Julian also excelled on the track during his school days - and later - with fastest times of 10.8 for the 100m and 22.1 for the 200m. “I was fortunate to train under highly qualified coaches and I learned a lot from my athletic experiences that is applicable in my business today.” On completing his days at Xavier Julian went to the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology where he received a Bachelor of Business (Public Administration). In 1978 - a year after he began his studies at RMIT - Julian secured a position with the VRC.

“My father passed away in 1972 and in 1976 my mother married Leo Prichard. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my life when I was studying at RMIT, but Leo, who taught me how to get things done both in the business world and in life in general, encouraged me to continue my studies and to pursue my interest in racing so I sent my resume to the different race clubs in Melbourne. Rod Johnson who was then the VRC’s chief executive officer, arranged for me to have an interview, and that led through to my being employed in the club’s racing department.”
In those days the VRC was the state’s Principal Race Club. As well as conducting meetings at Flemington and club functions, its responsibilities extended to running racing in Victoria. This meant club appointees conducted inquiries, imposed penalties, handled integrity matters, set race dates, and administered country racing, which are tasks that were subsequently diverted to Racing Victoria Limited.

“I was in the racing department until 1987 and during that time I worked very closely with owners and trainers. The position involved managing entries and acceptances for all Victorian clubs and being the liaison between club secretaries and the TAB with the objective of setting race programs that would maximise betting turnover. I was fortunate to meet some great personalities including, in particular, the late Kevin Curtain who was training for Lloyd Williams at the time. “Kevin, who had his stables at Caulfield, was a larger than life character and the only licensed person I knew of who would have a drink with officials on a Friday night. He was also the first trainer I knew of to have a mobile phone, which Lloyd had supplied so he could track him down.
“A lot of people have heard how Kevin, having suffered a heart attack, drove himself from Werribee races to St Vincent’s Hospital where he parked on the footpath and walked in. His visitors were limited, so during that time the hospital staff was informed that I was his solicitor. I was supposed to be discussing his affairs but the documents I had were actually race fields, form guides and race programs so we were able to sort out his stable’s entries for forthcoming meetings. He is someone I will never forget.”

As his career at the VRC was taking shape, Julian was courting Julie Andrews who was working as a physiotherapist at Albury-Wodonga on the border between New South Wales and Victoria: “I had a lot of friends from Xavier who lived in the Albury-Wodonga area and I met Julie on one of my visits to see them,” he said. The pair soon realised they had a mutual interest in horses. Besides being a member of the Wodonga Pony Club and riding with the Murray Valley Hunt Club Julie, initially under her grandmother’s wing, had been a regular racegoer from her school days. Their courtship led through to their marriage – celebrated on a Sunday to avoid a clash with the races - at St. Augustine’s Church at Wodonga in 1987. Now the Group Manager of Health Services at Medibank Private, Julie has since maintained her interest in horses and is involved in the breeding business with Julian:“Julie loves the mares and foals so it has been best for us to keep them at a distance because, otherwise, there would be pressure to retain more of them rather than selling.”

Around the time he and Julie were married Julian moved from the racing department to become editor of Inside Racing - the Victorian Racing industry’s official race program publication - as well as managing all other industry publications: “When I took on the role I re-positioned Inside Racing from being purely a Racing Calendar into an industry journal that became an essential tool for racing personnel. “We added feature writers, introduced editorial content, increased the focus on breeding and improved the general quality of its production, with the result that circulation increased considerably. Importantly, that led to Inside Racing being transformed from an industry cost into a profit-centre. The publications I was looking after became a key channel for promotion of the industry’s incentive schemes, and that opened the way for me to get out into the field beyond the club. That presented a great opportunity for me to meet breeders and stud masters around Australia and in New Zealand, which proved to be most helpful when I began breeding in my own right.”

Among the people he was introduced to was New Zealand bloodstock agent “Ginger” Tankard who sold Julian his first horse Kiltanon in 1988. By Licorice Stick from the Taipan mare Placid Queen, Kiltanon, who had previously been placed in New Zealand, progressed under the care of John Meagher from a Mornington maiden to Flemington by winning seven consecutive races before going amiss. With the earnings from Kiltanon Julian purchased Vital Curves, who is by McGinty from the Gold Sovereign mare Career Girl. She also proved to be a worthwhile financial proposition by winning four races, three of them in Melbourne, as well as being placed in the Listed VRC VicHealth Foundation Stakes on Melbourne Cup Day in 1990.

“That placing on Cup Day was a thrill. Typically she was back in the field, but she flew home to run a very close third. I think we celebrated as loudly as the owners of the Melbourne Cup winner on that day.” On her retirement Vital Curves continued to add further to her value by producing the Matamata Stakes-Gr.2 winner Velasco from a mating with Flying Spur. While dabbling in his racehorse ownership Julian’s career at the VRC was soon to have a significant change in direction: “The club identified, through market research, that members attended the races more regularly than non-members. As a club, it was decided we needed to capitalise on this, which we did through the building of a new members’ grandstand and a subsequent membership drive. The proposed increase in new members inevitably meant a revamping and expansion of the membership department and I applied for the position of membership manager. Through Sue Lloyd-Williams who was then general manager-marketing and is now deputy-chief executive officer, I was given the opportunity I’ve had ever since.”

At the time Julian was also studying at Monash University where he completed a graduate Diploma of Business Management. As part of the course he developed a marketing plan, based on value-added benefits in membership organisations, which he was to later successfully implement at the VRC. The plan included the introduction of an increasingly popular club loyalty program - Racing Rewards; a junior membership program; race day and non-race day events; members’ tours; and a host of other events throughout the year. In the intervening years Julian has overseen a significant growth in VRC membership to 28,000 at the present time while maintaining a retention rate of 97% of full members.

“I am very proud of that and the fact that, since I have been general manager of membership services, the revenue generated has increased five-fold to nearly $22m last year,” Julian said. “Also we have increased the interest in racing in a younger demographic. When I began in the position 70% of members were over 55 years old, but now 52% of members are aged under 45 years.”
Julian says the “biggest challenge” for his department’s permanent staff of 10, and 10 contract workers, is the lead up to each year’s Melbourne Cup Carnival. “Members and their guests represent approximately 50% of the crowd during Melbourne Cup week, and everyone of those people is important, so there isn’t much margin for error. During the carnival I work in more of an operational event management role to try and ensure that everything goes as smoothly as possible.

“That entails liaising with the liquor licensing people and police departments, security firms, catering companies and all on-site contractors, with the aim of providing a great race day experience. I have a strong quality improvement focus and each year we review our performance after the carnival, and throughout the season we discuss what can be improved. We also conduct extensive market research which further stimulates discussion of new ideas. “We recruit staff from other major events to bring their experiences into the department. Also we look at other leading sporting clubs and events such as the Melbourne Cricket Club, the Australian Football League, the Australian Open tennis, Commonwealth and Olympic Games and benchmark ourselves against their performances to see what could be transferred to the club and the carnival.

“I firmly believe that you can’t afford to give your client a reason to question their investment with you, and I have worked on this as well as the many added benefits we now give members. During this time Brian Beattie, the former managing director of Coles Myer and then the VRC’s chief executive officer, had a great influence on my career. He taught me the importance of customer service, something that race clubs had previously taken for granted, and that has become a major focal point for me with such a large membership base.” Julian says he has also learned from meeting high profile people, both in racing and other fields, during the Melbourne Cup Carnival and on overseas trips: “I’ve been able to spend time with international trainers when they are in Melbourne for the Cup or at meetings at Royal Ascot, Hong Kong and Dubai. There is no doubt that the internationals have transformed the Cup since they began coming to Melbourne in the early 1990s.

“It is very ambitious to travel a horse half-way around the world to unfamiliar tracks and different racing styles and expect everything to go right on the day. You have to admire and respect the confidence of the people who try. Trainers like Luca Cumani who came so close with Bauer last year, is still perfecting his choice of stayer for our conditions, and Richard Gibson who is continually gaining knowledge and perfecting the art of conditioning horses to win overseas, are my selections for the next winning international trainer. In my view racing is now very much an international industry, and the international competition and exposure helps to continually lift the quality of horses and breeding - both here and abroad.”

As the 1990s were unfolding Julian and Julie were gradually easing themselves into the breeding side of the industry. To begin with the Sullivan’s breeding interests were in New Zealand with the first two mares they owned being mated with champion sire Zabeel at Sir Patrick Hogan’s world renowned Cambridge Stud and sold in his draft. “Sir Patrick really set the standard for establishing a stallion and he provided a lesson for us in the way he promoted and sold his yearlings,” Julian said. “In those days, in the early 1990s, New Zealand breeders were leading the industry and were very cleverly marketing ‘the New Zealand thoroughbred’ throughout Australasia as well as overseas. “I can recall the vibrant marketing that highlighted New Zealand-bred horses winning our prized races, and it made for a compelling reason to attend the New Zealand sales. We in Australia are also now marketing our yearling sales very well, with Aushorse doing a first class job in promoting and marketing our horses and our sales. So much so, that we now lead the way in the marketing and selling of our horses to the international market.

“We also now have the leading studs in the southern hemisphere with Coolmore, Darley and Arrowfield all major players in the horse breeding scene worldwide. They all employ a host of outstanding horse people who are more than willing to pass on their knowledge, including such as people as Sam Fairgray at Arrowfield. “I met Sam when I started out in the breeding business and he’s always been more than willing to help me at any time I’ve needed some advice. There is no doubt also that the influx of international studs, which has provided access to many of the world’s leading stallions and bloodlines, has been fantastic for Australia. Investment at our sales by the internationals has also been of huge benefit to the Australian thoroughbred industry.”
Importantly Julian also realised, early on, that as a breeder it was imperative to provide the type of product the market was after: “Julie and I soon came to appreciate that the major buyers were becoming much more discerning and applying more detailed performance analysis to their selections in the sales ring. As commercial breeders we need to apply that same level of objectivity to our decisions to retain or sell a mare, and to where our horses are bred, raised and prepared for sale. Again, that’s the criteria the buyer applies.

“Along the way I have been very fortunate to have spent a lot of time at yearling sales with some great judges of horses, and have inspected the complete catalogue with people like Henry Plumtre, George Smith, Ross Teitzel and Bill Burns. Besides improving our overall understanding of conformation, it’s great for understanding what the buyers are looking for.”
Julian also came to meet Bill Mitchell during the years he was training in Melbourne. That led to he and Julie sending mares to the dual Gr.1-winning Rainbow Quest horse Spectrum (IRE) when he was standing at the Mitchell family’s Yarraman Park Stud at Scone, and later to the prematurely deceased Golden Slipper Stakes winner Catbird.

“Our association with Yarraman Park grew from there. Harry and Arthur Mitchell are great horse people who are very well respected in the racing and breeding community. They’re extremely supportive, provide great advice, and fully understand the commercial side of breeding and selling - and they have become good friends of ours. “Our mares are predominately based at Yarraman Park these days. From that we are able to call on the help and advice from Harry and Arthur when we are deciding where to mate the mares for the best commercial return. Also, by being at Yarraman, you are more independent and have the freedom to send your mares to any stallion in the Hunter without feeling you are jeopardising your relationships with the major studs - and that is important.”

Foremost among the mares Julian and Julie have had at Yarraman Park is Battonage, by Kenmare from the Without Fear mare Estate Label, and her Thunder Gulch half-sister, Patagonia. After her yearlings had previously brought $110,000, $170,000 and $100,000 Battonage’s colt by Redoute’s Choice was sold to Wadham Park for $300,000 at the 2006 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale in 2006. Then last year her colt by Encosta de Lago was knocked down to Nathan Tinkler’s Patinack Farm for $660,000. Battonage’s 2002 filly by Redoute’s Choice is the Debutante Stakes-LR winner Fullazz, a winner of four races and $218,750, and Battonage’s foal of 2000 is the Flying Spur gelding Flying Kenny - a good performer in Hong Kong and winner of $560,000. Patagonia has also been a money-spinner for the Sullivans with her Redoute’s Choice yearlings going for $470,000 (Crevaux) at the 2006 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale and for $350,000 (Magallanes) the following year.

“As everyone involved knows, there are many highs and lows in breeding. We’d been through quite a few lows in the early years so we were ecstatic when we started to sell our yearlings for higher prices. Our business is a self-funding operation and you need to receive healthy returns to ensure you can keep going.” The Sullivans this year retained a yearling filly by Fastnet Rock from Battonage and she will be prepared at Randwick by Grahame Begg. They also have She’s Curvaceous and a Dehere (USA) two year-old in training with Begg; Stalingrad in the Rosehill stables of Tim Martin, and a rising two year-old filly by Anabaa (USA) from Velasco headed for the stables of Kevin Gray in New Zealand.

She’s Curvaceous, who is by Flying Spur from Vital Curves, is a placegetter at Randwick while Stalingrad, by Redoute’s Choice from their Kingmambo mare Sakhalin (USA), is a Rosehill winner and was placed in the STC Gloaming Stakes-Gr.2 last spring. “We kept this year’s yearling filly from Velasco because she is the image of her mother in attitude and conformation. Besides Anabaa is proving to be an outstanding broodmare stallion. We’re hoping she’ll emulate her mother’s success and become a valuable broodmare when she is retired. “Importantly, retaining her fitted into the business plan we have adopted. Now we are enjoying a reasonable level of success, our strategy for the future is to develop a small team of mares whose stock will sell at the top end of the market - and I’d love one day to breed a sales topper and to have a Gr.1 winner good enough to compete in Hong Kong or Royal Ascot. That would be great!”

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