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Villa Maria sells off vineyards to drive growth plans
New Zealand winery Villa Maria has said it is selling off 31 hectares of “surplus land” in order to raise funds to “accelerate its global growth ambitions”.
The vineyard land in Mangere around the estate’s Auckland headquarters is being sold off to raise capital that the company wants to reinvest in its wineries and sustainable and organic viticulture programmes, brands and marketing efforts as demand increases in key markets.
CEO Justin Liddell explained: “We’ve been making changes to our business consistent with our vision to be one of the world’s great wine companies.
“I’m really proud of the team who has achieved sound results despite the challenges of COVID. We’ve restructured and refreshed our business, optimised and refined our brand and marketing portfolios and redefined our hospitality offering to enhance our consumer experience. We have laid the foundations for our future success and this is the next phase in our growth strategy.”
The vineyards being sold off were originally acquired back in 2000 but Liddell went on that the value of the land since then had risen to the point, “where it’s not possible to generate a reasonable return on these vineyards. We’re exploring selling 31 hectares of vineyard and bare land surrounding our headquarters at Mangere. We will continue to operate our Auckland winery, bottling, warehousing, head office and hospitality functions on the remaining 10ha”.
He added that the company was also exploring other avenues in order to raise capital, including from “interested parties” although he said it was too early to, “speculate on who a new investor might be or the nature or extent of the investment”.
Villa Maria is a leading brand in the UK but has also set its sights on “untapped potential” in North America and Asia.
“We’re really focused on continuing to share the best of New Zealand wine with the world and building genuine relationships while also using data and insights to deliver on consumer and market trends. Enhancing our sustainability credentials and organic product portfolio amongst other initiatives, will help us tap into growing global demand,” said Liddell.