Wattie’s National Distribution Centre Syndication launched

Property syndication specialists Erskine + Owen have launched a new syndication offer to wholesale investors for the Wattie’s National Distribution Centre in Hastings.

This follows the successful closure of the company’s syndication of 43 Maclaggan Street in Dunedin on 30 July 2019. All units were taken up within two weeks, well ahead of the original close date of 26 August.

Offering a projected pre-tax cash return of 8.0% per annum, the new syndication is for the site of Wattie’s National Distribution Centre at 113 Elwood Road in Hastings, which supplies over 1,200 Wattie’s product lines throughout New Zealand and Australia.

The property sits on a 6.3-hectare site and has a gross floor area of 48,500sqm. With an A+ seismic rating, the warehouse meets 100% of current of the New Building Standard. It is also immediately adjacent to Heinz Wattie’s processing plant and features a rail siding that provides direct access to Napier Port, which continues to reap the benefits of investment and growth.

The property was purchased for $29.1 million, half financed by BNZ bank. It is fully tenanted to two tenants. The principal tenant, Heinz Wattie’s has a lease in place for 7.5 years until 30 April 2027, providing an annual rent of $2,218,719. Heinz Wattie’s is owned by Kraft Heinz Inc, the 5th largest food and beverage company in the world. The property’s second tenant, Tomoana Warehousing Limited, leases a smaller building for an annual rent of $60,000. Rent is subject to a CPI review every two years, from 1 May 2020.

Toby Hunn of Erskine + Owen said: “This offer combines an iconic New Zealand brand on a long lease in an A+ seismic-rated property that is core to their New Zealand and export distribution strategy, and in a strong and growing region of the country.

“It also offers a great opportunity to invest in the future of the Hawkes Bay as a major agriculture and food processing hub. In August this year a successful IPO for Napier Port, the country’s fourth largest, raised $234 million to build a new wharf. Consumer confidence in the region’s economy is strong, with unemployment at a decade-low 4.1%, and tourism spending in the Bay also up.

“The offer has been fully underwritten, and after the enthusiastic uptake of our last syndication offer, and the number of investors who missed out on it, we are already fielding considerable interest in the units that are available for purchase by Wholesale Investors at $100,000 per unit.”

For more information on the offer, please visit: www.erskineowen.co.nz/watties.

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