Garden centre in holiday town deal

Te Puia Garden Centre. Photo / Supplied

Expressions of interest are invited for a prominent corner site in Whitianga that includes a garden centre which could continue to operate as a freehold going concern.

"This site offers exceptional exposure and good future development potential in a thriving Coromandel coastal town,"said Steve Hinton, of Bayleys Whitianga.

Hinton said the site was in two titles with 797sq m fronting Cook Dr and 809sq m title on Lee St occupied by a two-level residential property.

The Te Puia Garden Centre at 73 Cook Dr specialises in native and exotic plants, while 19 Lee St is a two-level residential property.

"Commercial investors would be hard pressed to find another corner property opportunity like this in Whitianga," Hinton said.

"Cook Dr is the main arterial route into the town's retail core and the property is adjacent to Whitianga's only supermarket, New World, in Joan Gaskell Dr. With a total of 1606sq m of land between the two titles and zoned for general activity, the future usage of this site is assured and wide-ranging."

Hinton said a new owner could continue with the owner-operator scenario currently in place, "but bigger picture lends itself to some wider thinking".

"To date, Whitianga has been insulated from big players in sectors like fast-food retail, but with population growth projections and the inevitable broad reach these corporates have, corner sites such as these have an inherent worth," said Hinton. "This could be the ultimate land bank opportunity in Whitianga and with the garden centre business well-established and growing, plus the residential dwelling to be rented out, there is holding income as a sweetener to the deal."

He said the current owners, Graham and Sue Pye, are well-known Coromandel locals with family farming ties back to Hot Water Beach. Two years ago, they sold the Te Puia native plant nursery and the land that now forms part of Hot Water Beach Holiday Park. The Pyes relocated to Whitianga to begin their retail operation, while living next-door. "The retail business may be fairly new, but the goodwill that the Pyes have accumulated over the years in both the wholesale and retail markets is substantial. There is great demand in this area for native plants as subdivision rulings on rural properties hinge largely on the covenanting of a percentage of the land and on developing or maintaining existing native plantings.

"The coastal Coromandel environment lends itself naturally to the hardy native plants and the nursery has an active and growing customer base. Likewise, the exotic plants such as yuccas also fit well with the low-maintenance requirements of holiday homeowners and locals alike."

Hinton said the garden centre comprised a stylish showroom/office in a fully paved and security-fenced setting. The stock will remain with the business along with potting and watering equipment.

"While the current owners still raise some of their plants in a family-owned nursery, they have also developed good chains of supply with other wholesalers so a new owner would be able to tap into those contacts," said Hinton.

The residential component of the property for sale is a three-bedroom, three-bathroom family home with 175sq m of living over two levels. The landscaped section is fenced and there is a double garage plus workshop.

"There could be potential for this to be a B&B operation or the whole property could be rented out as another income stream."