'Maori village' has potential, says liquidator

1.00pm

Entrepreneur Suzanne Paul has told the liquidator of her failed Auckland Maori tourism venture, he should pay creditors before she gets any of her own money back.

Liquidator Jeff Meltzer said today Rawaka, an ambitious Maori village project under the harbour bridge on Auckland's North Shore, is in liquidation and on the market.

Mr Meltzer said he was appointed yesterday to get the best deal he could for creditors.

He said today the level of debt generated since the village opened earlier this year was not yet known.

Some builders and suppliers who had worked on the project were said to be owed $130,000. Ms Paul is believed to have sunk a great deal of money into the venture, which offers tourist a taste of Maori culture and life, including hakas and hangis.

It went into voluntary liquidation yesterday after refusing to take further bookings last weekend.

Other bookings for later this year still stood, Mr Meltzer told NZPA today.

He hoped if some of those who had expressed interest yesterday bought the place, it could continue to trade.

"It has got a lot of potential. The place is all set up and ready to go."

Mr Meltzer said the village had some reasonable bookings in the past and it has got some good forward bookings in August, September and October.

Two people had approached him about buying the village but did not talk money.

"What we have got is an opportunity to sell it as a going concern."

Mr Meltzer was due to meet creditors today and expected to know by early next week the debt level of the venue.

He said he would be asking creditors if they could work together to package the business and sell it as a going concern.

"My job is to represent the creditors so it would appear to me to be in their best interests to say 'why don't we give it a go for a couple of weeks'."

Mr Meltzer said he believed it failed for several reasons which he was still investigating.

The venue opened later than expected, after the high summer tourist season.

"Trading through winter months is always low anyway and I think the working capital that was expected to be raised over the summer months just didn't eventuate and it was to hold them over through the winter," Mr Meltzer said.

The decision to close the business in the old Fisherman's Wharf building at Northcote Point, came yesterday from the Rawaka shareholders who are listed by the Companies Office as Suzanne Kilworth (Paul's married name), her partner Duncan Wilson, and former husband Walter Kilworth.

Last month, Ms Paul said she had remortgaged a British property to cover Rawaka's debts and had her East Auckland mansion up for sale.

Mr Meltzer said there was a huge number of tourists coming through Auckland in winter and if it could operate in summer, why could it not operate during winter.

"It has to get established and get that base right and I just don't think it got itself established well enough before the working capital dried up."

Ms Paul, who did not want to talk about the business, was very "cut up" but was helping with the liquidation, Mr Meltzer said.

She had put a lot of money into the company and was a creditor as were others.

"She said to me she wants to see creditors paid before she gets any money back."

Mr Meltzer said Ms Paul had the legal right to stand alongside them for a claim, but was doing the honourable thing by insisting other creditors were paid first.

He said if he could find a buyer this week he was optimistic it could reopen within a couple of weeks, and he was optimistic it could succeed with a "bit of tweaking" and a good level of working capital.

He said the chances of creditors getting their money depended on who may be interested in buying the business.

If he could sell the business for its level of debt, the creditors would be paid.

- NZPA