Kitchen tycoon Malcolm Healey is now said to be living in the US
Hull-born billionaire Malcolm Healey is the man behind interiors giant Wren Kitchens (Image: Hull Daily Mail/Grimsby Live)
Hull entrepreneur Malcolm Healey and his family have been ranked among the richest in the country in a year which saw an “exodus” of wealth. According to the annual Sunday Times Rich List, the Wren Kitchens and retail tycoon ranks sixth in the top 10 wealthiest in the North, below the family of supermarket supremo Sir Ken Morrison’s family and the billionaire founder of Doncaster-based sofa seller DFS Lord Kirkham and his family, among others.
The Healeys regularly feature in the Rich List which this year includes 350 individuals and families holding a combined wealth of £783.5bn — a sum larger than the annual GDP of countries such as Belgium, Israel and Sweden. Mr Healey is now reported to be living in the US, where he previously founded and sold kitchen supplier Mills Pride for £800m.
There was no change in the Healey family’s ranking, with an estimated wealth of £901m. In June, the media-shy Mr Healey will turn 82, having come from humble beginnings in Hull with brother Eddie, the retail empresario behind the Meadowhall Shopping Centre in Sheffield.
It is 17 years since Malcolm set up Wren Kitchens, which has gone on to become a major player in the UK market and now supplies bedrooms, with newly published accounts showing its turnover topped £1bn in 2025, with operating profits of more than £101m. The business is the third of Mr Healey’s successful kitchen ventures and while it is growing in the UK, bosses recently confirmed its withdrawal from the US citing difficulties in finding showroom properties.
The Rich List is compiled using identifiable wealth in land, property, and other assets such as art and racehorses, or significant shares in publicly quoted companies, but excludes private bank accounts. Topping this year’s Northern list is Thailand-based crypto currency and technology investor Christopher Harborne, who has become notable for his £12m in donations to the Reform Party.
Robert Watts, compiler of the Sunday Times Rich List, said: “This year’s Rich List is a tale of two exoduses. One in six of the individuals and families who appeared on the list two years ago don’t feature this time. Many foreign billionaires who have been living in the UK have also dropped out because they have moved away. We have also seen a sharp rise in the number of British nationals now resident in Dubai, Switzerland and Monaco. As UK nationals these people remain on our Rich List — wherever they now live.
“These two exoduses pose challenges for the UK economy and its public finances. Will more of the wealthy now set up or grow their ventures overseas and in doing so create fewer jobs here? How much tax – if any – will Rachel Reeves’s Treasury be able to extract from those affluent Brits who have now left the country?
“For nearly 40 years the Sunday Times Rich List has analysed the fortunes of Britain’s most affluent people. We believe understanding where wealth lies and where it is being accumulated is a vital part of a functioning democracy. Over the years our research has told us a lot about our country, charting the way a generation of largely self-made entrepreneurs overtook the old money of the landed gentry.
“This year’s edition shines a light on fortunes made from artificial intelligence, driverless cars and crypto-currencies as well as baby milk, make-up, hoodies and other everyday items. We know many of our readers find those rags-to-riches stories of entrepreneurs who started out with little more than a laptop and an idea particularly inspiring.”
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