Community-led property development raises over $300,000

5 March 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Community-led property development raises over $300,000 from their community

Lyttelton based company, Collett’s Corner, hit their minimum goal of $300,000 for their equity crowdfunding campaign on Friday. They have now raised $356,000 to fund the next stages of their community-minded property development, with the ultimate goal of raising $2million in the next two weeks.

“People from around the country are taking notice of Collett’s Corner, because it represents systemic change. I’m hearing time and time again, this is how property development should be done. Imagine a future where every building is owned by a community it serves, we would be building very different cities, they would be about connection and belonging as well as a commercial return. People are investing in that idea,” says Camia Young, Director of Collett’s Corner.

The Collett’s Corner equity crowdfunding campaign launched on 14 February 2019, after two years of work by Camia Young and her team developing new models of architecture and ownership. Camia Young is an expert in architecture and community design, having co-instigated Christchurch based projects like Gapfiller’s Pallet Pavilion in 2012 and the XCHC in 2014.

Collett’s Corner Limited is looking to raise up to $2 million, which represents 80% of the company. Investor shares are priced at $100, and that is also the minimum investment. 20,000 shares are available, with individual ownership capped at 10% of the value of the company.

Investors to date have ranged from local government officials, to local residents, community members, to larger investors including a family trust that has backed the community-ownership model by matching investment up to $50,000.

Thomas Nash, who secured that matched investment, is Massey University’s Social Entrepreneur in Residence:

“Collett’s Corner is a flagship initiative in the emerging field of community-wealth building. It is regenerative, distributive and genuinely transformative. The building will be emblematic of the shift to an economic model where both the ownership and the rewards of business are shared equitably.”

The building was designed over the course of two years in collaboration with the Lyttelton community around the concept of wellbeing. This central focus is reflected in a mix of wellness centre, hospitality, retail, co-working space and apartments. Situated on the corner of London and Oxford Streets, Collett’s corner is located in a prime position amidst Lyttelton’s commercial core.

PledgeMe’s founder, Anna Guenther, is excited that another female founder in the regions has raised money through the platform.

“We have seen such diversity in the campaigns funded through our platform, and that women and the regions are outperforming compared to traditional methods of finance. Over 50% of our campaigns have female founders, and almost a third of the funding has gone to regional campaigns in the last year.”

The campaign launched publicly on 14 February, and will run until 21 March 2019 unless the maximum goal is reached prior. They have already raised $356,000.

Camia Young, who is a Trustee of the Hillary Institute, will present Collett’s Corner at the next New Frontiers conference organised by the Edmund Hillary Fellowship on March 11-13 in Upper Hutt.

For more details: https://www.pledgeme.co.nz/investments/347-collett-s-corner

For more information on PledgeMe:

PledgeMe (www.pledgeme.co.nz) provides a platform for Kiwis and now Australians to go to their networks for funding, and have raised over $30 million for over 1,300 campaigns. PledgeMe are the only combined equity, lending and project crowdfunding platform in New Zealand. Last year PledgeMe expanded to Australia, and are now licenced to provide equity crowdfunding in both countries.

ENDS

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