Auckland Billionaire Investor Gets $ 100 Million + Countdown, Bunnings Westgate

A billionaire Auckland real estate investor has bought Bunnings Warehouse Westgate, New Zealand’s flagship, and two large supermarkets, properties collectively valued at more than $ 100 million.

New Zealand’s largest bunnings which is 15,000 square feet and opened in July at Westgate as well as Countdowns in Wellington and Orewa were sold to the investor who has an ever-expanding Australasian portfolio.

Ben Cook of Viaduct Harbor-based Cook Property Group told the Herald today that he had purchased the properties.

Cook declined to say how much he paid, explaining that he had entered into confidential business agreements and was bound by them. However, market sources confirmed that Bunnings Westgate had a market value of around $ 70 million, Countdown Orewa around $ 30 million, and Countdown Aotea around $ 18 million.

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On top of all this, Cook had bought Countdown Howick is July. This property is understood to be valued at about $ 25 million. In addition, he already owns Bunnings stores in Sydney and Gray Lynn.

The deals are some of New Zealand’s largest retail property transactions; however, Cook has a substantial pre-existing large format retail portfolio that includes Bunnings Gray Lynn and Bunnings Eastgardens in Sydney.

“I bought Countdown Orewa and Countdown Aotea Wellington a few weeks ago. These properties were sold by Woolworths NZ and marketed to the public through Bayleys. I was the successful buyer,” Cook said.

“I will maintain these properties for the long term, in line with my usual investment modus operandi,” he said.

“I also purchased the recently opened Bunnings Westgate store which is the New Zealand flagship store for Bunnings. This new property joins my existing portfolio of Bunnings: Bunnings Gray Lynn and Bunnings Eastgardens in Sydney, the flagship store in Sydney.” said. .

In total, the three countdowns Cook recently purchased at Howick, Orewa and Wellington, as well as Bunnings Westgate, are valued at $ 143 million.

That does not include the valuation of Sydney’s Bunnings flagship store or Bunnings Gray Lynn, which also owns Cook Property Group. Cook bought Bunnings Gray Lynn in 2017.

Bunnings Westgate is a two-story building with 327 parking spaces on the ground level and four separate stores on the ground floor, which are rented to other businesses.

Bunnings Eastgardens is a 14,700 square meter store on a 2.3ha site, rented long term.

Bayleys said the two Countdown supermarkets were on wholly owned land, with new initial 10-year leases for Countdown with renewal rights to potentially extend occupancy through 2080. The properties were offered individually and collectively.

“They have a combined gross leasable area of ​​6,875 square feet and a total net income of more than $ 2 million annually,” Marketing said. The supermarkets were sold by Woolworths NZ, part of the Australian owned and traded supermarket business, which owns the Countdown brand supermarkets here.

The properties return more than $ 2 million in annual rent and were sold through a tender that closed last month.

Five years ago, Cook set the New Zealand home price record when he bought a landmark home in Herne Bay for $ 24 million. He bought a large three-level minimalist gray house from endoscopic surgeon John Dunn and his wife Rose.

In Australia, Cook Property also owns a 15-store boutique retail strip in Sydney’s Bondi with 19 underground parking garages, as well as the large Entrada Shopping Center in Sydney’s Parramatta.

In Auckland, Cook has properties around the Britomart area, on Shortland St, in Takapuna and the old Ponsonby Post Office, as well as a large Auckland parking block.