Tauranga-based investment firm buys EziBuy's Palmerston North Distribution Centre

Wednesday, 14 November 2018

Property Managers Group chief executive Scott McKenzie says the company sees a good long-term future in the EziBuy site

EziBuy is getting a new landlord, as a Tauranga-based commercial property company buys its Palmerston North distribution centre.

Property Managers Group's unlisted commercial investment fund Pacific Property has shelled out $35.5 million for the El Prado Drive property off Argosy, another property company.

Property Managers Group chief executive Scott McKenzie said the property was a good opportunity to get a foot in the door of Palmerston North's thriving logistics sector, and a solid investment in its own right thanks to its location and having a 40-year-old retail company as a long-term tenant.

'We've been watching Palmerston North for a while now, as a growing logistics hub. [The centre's] in a good location, close to the airport, and EziBuy is an ideal tenant from our perspective.'

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McKenzie said the relatively stable workforce and likely long-term demand at the Palmerston North distribution centre was a big draw for the investment company.

Last month, EziBuy announced the company will shift half its distribution to a new centre in Brisbane to supply its Austrailian customers from early 2019.

However, EziBuy executive director Richard Facioni said job losses were being kept to a minimum and the company planned to start distributing the New Zealand sales of other brands, including a relaunched Pumpkin Patch, through the Palmerston North centre instead.

McKenzie said adding the distribution centre to the Pacific Property's 11 other properties was part of an ongoing strategy to spread its investment over a wide range of industries and locations.

Shares in the private fund will be sold to the public to help finance the property purchase ahead of the sale's full settlement in December and the fund's other recent aquisition, the site of Alto Packaging in Hamilton.