The property industry lost one of its most respected leaders and KR Peters Director Peter Nicolls lost a dear friend when Metricon CEO Mario Biasin died suddenly on Monday 16 May.



Peter and Mario were friends, neighbours and business colleagues for 46 years. They worked together in the early days of Metricon and built homes next door to each other in Keys Court, Wantirna South, remaining neighbours for 16 years.



"I started working with Mario in 1976 when I got off the tram I was driving and applied for a real estate job," Mr Nicolls explained.



"He was a 25 year old accountant at the real estate firm where I got my first job."



Mario Biasin went on to set up one of Australia's most successful building companies, Metricon, with partner George Kline. Peter became the fledgling company's first sales agent. In those early days the small 8 person Metricon team worked out of offices in Hawthorn Road, Caulfield, building 20 to 25 homes a year.



At the time of Mario's death, Metricon employed 2500 staff and is Australia's largest home builder with 6052 starts in 2021, up from 4534 in 2020.



With Mario's help, Peter established KR Peters in 1980 and was the exclusive agent for Metricon for 12 years selling Metricon homes across Melbourne from North Dandenong, to Ringwood, Patterson Lakes, Clayton South, Oakleigh, Sunbury, Hallam, Narre Warren and Berwick.



Peter described his friend as "smart" and "astute", whom everyone respected.



"He was a gun. Even back then you could see he had a brain on his shoulders."



Peter remembers fondly shooting the breeze with Mario outside their Wantirna South homes as their children played together.



"We'd stand in the driveway and talk about the day's events, what had happened. We talked about everything and anything."



Banter would inevitably include Mario's beloved Essendon Football Club (he once named all the streets in a Berwick estate after Essendon players) and racehorses. In later years he bought a stake in A-League team Melbourne Victory. Sport of any kind was a passion.



"My fondest memory is of going to Lindsay Park racing stables with him and watching his horses being paraded," Peter said.



Peter watched with admiration as his friend built Metricon into a powerhouse and Mario become one of Australia's most respected CEOs.



"He built an empire by sticking to his strong values and instilling them in everybody he knew," said Peter.



"He was a straight shooter, a good thinker, caring and, in the end, he became a giant in the building industry."



The friends met regularly for dinner and often enjoyed a competitive game of cards.



Mario had recently purchased an apartment on the Gold Coast where Peter and his family spend time and the two friends saw a lot of each other on Queensland breaks.



Peter was in his office at KR Peters when word reached him of his friend's death.



"It's a huge loss. He was a lifelong friend. Everybody who knew him adored him. He had no enemies. He was humble despite being hugely successful. He was a great connector with people."



"I enjoyed just picking up the phone and talking to him. We had a lot of values in common. We both had families and living next to each other we built a bond."



Peter last saw his old friend five weeks before Mario's death when they shared dinner and a few glasses of wine.



"Unfortunately, I didn't get to say goodbye. But I have great memories and will always value the friendship we shared.



"It's an irreplaceable loss."