Smorgon was born in 1913 in Heidelberg, a German settlement in Ukraine, then part of the Russian Empire.
[2] Naum Smorgon and his brothers resumed the family's kosher butchery in the Melbourne suburb of Carlton North, and Victor entered the wholesale meat business.
[3] The success of Victor's meat importing business saw the entire family become involved in the company, and soon Smorgon Consolidated Industries expanded its business to cover plastics, glass, steel and recycling.
[8] Victor Smorgon was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 1990 for service to art as a benefactor.
[9] Smorgon was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) in 2007 for service to the community as a benefactor and supporter of a wide range of organisations, particularly in the areas of art, education and medicine.