Rebecca Frizelle inducted into Business Hall of Fame

Written on the 2 December 2024 by Gold Coast PR Company Consulting Hall

Gold Coast Titans co-owner and former car industry leader Rebecca Frizelle has been inducted into the Gold Coast Business Hall of Fame.

Mrs Frizelle was presented with the honour at the 29^th Gold Coast Business Excellence Award gala held at The Star Gold Coast on Saturday.

Mrs Frizelle is a proud and passionate supporter of the city, a passion which grew after her family moved to the city in 1976.

After finishing secondary school, Mrs Frizelle said she needed a good paying job to fund a law degree and living expenses.

She found a job in 1990 working for the then small James Frizelle Mazda car dealership at Southport as the receptionist. She fell in love with the industry and fell in love with the founder’s son Brett Frizelle.

Over the next 30 years as the Gold Coast grew, the Frizelle’s motor group grew dramatically adding Isuzu Trucks, Chrysler Jeep, Audi, Volkswagen, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles and Isuzu Utes to the business.  State-of-the-art dealerships were built in Logan, Gaven, Arundel, Nerang, Robina, Tweed Heads and Lismore.

During that time Mrs Frizelle helped to drive the company in her role as chief operating officer. She spearheaded the company’s merger with Warren Automotive Group, which led to a stock exchange listing.

In the business arena, Mrs Frizelle served as an independent director of ASX listed Sunland Development Group from January 2018 until June 2022.

But for many people on the Gold Coast, Mrs Frizelle is best known for her involvement with the Gold Coast Titans.

Starting as a sponsor in 2006, she became chairman of the NRL club in 2014, becoming the first woman to chair a national sporting organisation. When things went badly at the Titans, Mrs Frizelle and Darryl Kelly teamed up to buy the club. Mrs Frizelle continues to serve on Titans board and is a 50% shareholder of the club.

Her business expertise now sees her as a director of Racing Queensland and she also serves on the boards of Paralympics Australia and the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games Organising Committee.

Mrs Frizelle has also been a massive contributor to a number of charities and not for profit organisations. She is a director of LifeFlight Australia, a charity that is special to her because her pilot father performed work with the rescue service in his retirement.

She also serves on the board of Experience Gold Coast, which serves to drive tourism growth and economic investment for the Gold Coast.

Mrs Frizelle has also had a long relationship with Griffith University. She was appointed a member of the Griffith Advisory Board member in 2018, then was appointed a Griffith University Council Member in January 2021 and appointed Deputy Chancellor of Griffith University in October 2022.

One of her proudest occasions was in 2020 when she was awarded an Order of Australia in recognition for her contributions to both the motor industry and rugby league. Mrs Frizelle says she still does not know who nominated her but she is delighted they did.