(Ernest) Roy Savage

1 Nov

Roy Savages first proper job was an assistant storeman with Wellington confectionary wholesaler the Griffin Savage Company, a business started by his father and Charlie Griffin in 1920.

In 1958 he gained control of N Hawkeswood, a Lower Hutt-based company which had an industrial glove agency. It caught Savage’s interest at a time when there was a growing awareness of the need for personal protection.

The renamed company, Hawkeswood Safety, later NZ Safety, was expanded to include a complete range of safety equipment sold through branches New Zealand wide and in Australia as Alsafe Safety.

When the business was sold 40 years later it employed about 400 staff and had a turnover approaching $100 million.