Bright spark could rebrand property

The future-proofed property is in the established North Shore industrial precinct. Photo / Supplied

Monaco Corporation, New Zealand's pre-eminent distributor of international electronics brands, is restructuring its business and relocating after 18 years at 10 Rothwell Ave, North Harbour.

As a result, Ryan de Zwart and Jimmy O'Brien of the North Shore office of Colliers International are marketing the property for Monaco through a six-week leasing campaign, seeking expressions of interest by Thursday, June 17.

Established in 1978, Monaco Corporation represents more than a dozen of the world's premium names in consumer and business electronics, entertainment and high-technology markets.

These include Casio, Pioneer, Wharfdale, Everdure, THQ, Warner Brothers, and Disney Interactive.

"This is the largest industrial building currently available for lease in the North Shore market and comprises the biggest building of its type on offer in Colliers' latest National Portfolio," de Zwart says.

"It is situated within the established North Shore industrial precinct and it is a future-proofed property with multiple possibilities for companies that would like to take either the whole space or just a part of it."

The building's total area is 9719sq m and it sits on a 14,309sq m site. Owned by Shriro Properties, it is currently divided up into a 5679sq m warehouse, a 3460sq m office and 580sq m storage, low-stud warehouse with mezzanine space.

Among the features of the property are seven roller doors, with a cart dock and road level access available. According to de Zwart, the property has a large number of carparks with good roadside car parking, lift access to first floor and a large lunch room, with a north-facing eating area.

De Zwart says that the property could be leased in a number of different ways.

"It could be split to accommodate up to four tenancies so we will be looking to lease areas to suit a variety of commercial and/or industrial occupiers."

Possible leasing options could include the following approximate areas:

* An office area of 3460sq m with a warehouse 5910 sq m;

* A ground-floor office 1666sq m with warehousing of 5910sq m;

* A ground-floor office 575sq m with warehouse 2981sq m;

* Ground-floor office of 1090sq m and warehouse of 2929sq m; and

* A first-floor office 1844sq m or part thereof upwards from 700sq m.

"The property is in a prestigious location within the established North Shore industrial precinct," says O'Brien. "It's only minutes' drive to the new Western Ring Route which, when completed in 2015, will provide a more direct route from North Harbour to Auckland International Airport. Equally, it is only minutes from the northern State Highway 1 motorway, accessed from Constellation Drive."

Westfield shopping centre in Albany is only a five-minute drive away and it is also close to Kristin College, one of New Zealand's leading independent co-educational schools

Neighbours include South Pacific Films, makers of TV production Go Girls at 3 Rothwell Ave; Hasbro Toys distribution; Sealegs International Ltd, manufacturers of amphibious boats; Vertex Pacific Ltd, plastic packaging product suppliers; and, on the corner of William Pickering Drive and Rothwell Avenue, major electrical contractor, Electrix.

O'Brien says that Colliers' research shows new, empty or partially leased developments in North Harbour, combined with existing vacant property, have provided plenty of supply for tenants during the boom years.

"However, in recent years, land values became so high that some developers were tempted to increase the office component of industrial developments to unusually high levels in the hope of increasing the overall rent. The high office to warehouse ratio in some North Harbour and Mairangi Bay properties thus deterred some industrial users from occupying."

Nonetheless, O'Brien says tenant inquiries have remained positive in the area.

"There is plenty of activity still out there. Prime industrial warehouse rents now sit between $90 per square metre and $110 per square metre in North Harbour.

"Sub-$2 million investors are particularly active but there are investors keen to invest at all levels, even over $10 million."

De Zwart adds that investment yields range between 7.5 per cent and 8.25 per cent and are expected to be unchanged in coming months.

He notes that there have been a number of large tenant movements on the North Shore recently including AA Insurance moving into 144 Target Rd.