Career
1960s
Con’s illustrious career began in 1968 upon graduating from Curtin University in Perth. He practiced as a community pharmacist for several years at a number of pharmacies in suburban and rural WA, with a focus on primary care guidance by the pharmacist - something that was not common at the time.
1970s
Throughout the 1970s the Berbatis family (consisting of Con, his mother Despina and brother John) opened, ran and sold a number of delicatessens. Despina proved to be an incredibly capable manager and under her supervision the delis (Bateman Road Deli, Mount Pleasant; Mobil Garage Deli, South Perth, and Glendalough Deli, Harborne Street) were very successful.
Con also opened the Girrawheen Medical Centre in 1975 and Cockman Road Medical Centre in Kingsley with his business partner during this decade.
During this time Con’s clinical pharmacy career was taking off. Between 1970 and 1974 Berbatis worked at the School of Pharmacy, Curtin University of Technology as a supervisor and lecturer in the undergraduate course of pharmaceutics and biochemistry. From 1975 through to 1977, he conducted research on adverse drug reactions in hospitals - a relatively unexplored area in Australia at the time - at Sydney Hospital under Doctor G.M. Eckert, Clinical Pharmacologist as an Australian Roche Postgraduate Research Fellow in Clinical Pharmacology. Con’s pioneering work in this field led to a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fellowship to study methods in the detection and prevention of adverse reactions to medically prescribed drugs.
The Churchill Fellowship took Con to Melbourne, Sydney, Hawaii and the west coast of the United States, meeting key figures within his field of research. He also attended the Clinical Pharmacology Conference in Milan which gave him access to invaluable contacts within his field of research.
Con stayed in Sydney until 1977, when he returned to Perth to take up the position of Clinical Pharmacist at Fremantle Hospital - the first position of its kind in Australia. He would stay there for the next five years.
1980s
The 1980s heralded the start of a 38-year business partnership with fellow pharmacist George Atzemis - the first project of which was the development of the Mirrabooka Medical Centre.
In 1986 the pair purchased Farrington Fayre Shopping Centre in Leeming and upgraded it significantly before selling in 2000. They also bought Kardinya Park Shopping Centre at auction in 1989, which is still owned by Con.
The Berbatis family continued to invest in delicatessens and newsagents; acquiring Nicholson Road Deli in Subiaco, Mobil Garage Deli in Quinns Rocks and Beaufort Street News in Mount Lawley during this decade. Con would also buy a 25% stake in the West Perth Miss Maud building.
Meanwhile Con’s pharmacy career continued to thrive and in 1978 he was awarded the Kodak Fellowship of Australia by the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia. During this period he focused on the prescription and administration of drugs and surveillance of drug effects within the wider community.
In 1980, he was elected as a Board Member of the Pharmaceutical Council of Western Australia and served until 1983.
From November 1984 to 1985, Con worked in the Clinical Pharmacology Department at the Alfred Hospital in Victoria as a visiting research fellow. He co-authored the Alfred Hospital submission into the Ministerial Committee to Review Cancer Services in Victoria.
In 1985, Con joined the Queen Victoria Medical Centre in Melbourne as an Assistant Administrator and was transferred into the Establishment Team of the Monash Medical Centre Clayton, Victoria. In 1988, he returned to Perth and to Curtin University as a lecturer in the School of Pharmacy. During these years, he was engaged as a quality review coordinator in the School of Pharmacy.
1990s
In 1990 Con and George Atzemis continued to build on their shopping centre portfolio with the purchase of Waterford Plaza Shopping Centre, which would be redeveloped and enhanced under Con’s directorship and sold in 2018.
The pair also acquired Quinns Rocks Shopping Centre in 1992. It was sold in 1996 following an extensive refurbishment.
Meanwhile the Berbatis family stepped into the budget backpackers accommodation industry with the purchase of the iconic Witch’s Hat Hostel in 1997.
The family also purchased and sold Subiaco Lotto News in the early 1990s.
In 1995, Con became a member of the working party on “Blood Testing Guidelines’ (Glucose and Cholesterol)”, for the Pharmaceutical Council of Western Australia. He began research studies into the management of opioid dependants in 1998 and visited research centres in the UK, Europe and USA under a National Fellowship of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia and led to Con becoming Chief Investigator in the National Evaluation of Pharmacy Services in Australia’s methadone programs.
2000s
The Berbatis family continued to expand their budget accommodation portfolio with the purchase of the Emperor’s Crown Backpackers in Stirling Street and Shannon House Backpackers in Subiaco.
Con also purchased the Plaza Arcade Shopping Centre in 2003 followed by the Holiday Inn Perth City Centre in 2009 which received significant redevelopment before being sold in 2018.
In 2003 Pharmaceutical Society of Western Australia bestowed upon Con the inaugural Eric Kirk Award for outstanding contributions by a Western Australian pharmacist.
2010s
While Con retired from pharmacy in 2015, his business interests have shown no signs of slowing down.
In 2012 Con’s attention moved to Port Hedland in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. He took possession of the Esplanade Hotel (which was redeveloped extensively) and acquired the lease for the Port Hedland Airport International Bar and Cafe.
Kardinya Shopping Centre is currently undergoing a major $80m, four-stage redevelopment.