Waikato Business News June/July 2018

8 WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS June/July 2018
Conversations with Mike Neale
of NAI Harcourts Hamilton
While I try to keep a handle
on what is happening in and
around the CBD, some of my
colleagues have a far better understanding
of what is going on in the other commercial
and industrial areas of Hamilton, so I
suggested that they were better to inform
our readers about these matters.
A snapshot of the eastern and
western precincts of Hamilton
Corner Heaphy Terrace & Oxford Street, Hamilton.
On the eastern side of Hamilton, visitors
to the Fairfield area may have noticed a
change in recent times.
The property formally occupied by
James R Hill funeral directors on the corner
of Heaphy Terrace and Oxford Street
has been undergoing redevelopment since
late 2017.
The new owners purchased the building
with a plan to complete a comprehensive
retail development, including the
creation of four separate retail tenancies.
The redevelopment includes a new
façade for the building and a seismic
strengthening programme.
Demand for retail space in suburban
Hamilton, especially on the eastern side
of the river, continues to substantially outweigh
supply, as a wide range of tenant
enquiries were fielded on the property,
with all tenancies being leased as the onsite
works were still taking place.
With total leasable space being circa
400sqm, demand was such that double
this space could have been successfully
leased.
The new tenants include a bakery/café,
body piercing studio, butchery and laundrette,
with tenancies ranging from 60sqm
to 145sqm and rental being circa $300/
sqm net.
Tenant fit-outs are well underway and
all tenants expect to be open for business
next month – according to Brad Chibnall
and Lyn Lee.
If we jump over the river to Frankton,
there has been a raft of activity to report
on in this traditional heartland industrial
area.
Notable transactions include the ex
Huttons / Goodman Fielder on the corner
of Lincoln Street and the Massey Street
Overbridge, which will change ownership
in July.
Mike Neale - Managing Director,
NAI Harcourts Hamilton.
This property has been largely vacant
for the past 4 years and the new owner,
known to many as ‘Superman’, is looking
to lease this substantial property in various
configurations as demand from individual
tenants require.
The 3.5ha industrial block of land has
nearly 14,000sqm of lettable area across
a range of buildings for uses such as cold
and dry stores, food processing, as well as
distribution warehouses, offices and yard
space.
If initial expressions of interest are
anything to go by, we anticipate that this
space will be taken up quickly – according
to Scott Sander and Brad Martin.
PPS Industries have finished their new
purpose-built premises on the corner of
Bandon and Ellis Streets, Frankton having
moved from their existing premises at
6 Bandon Street.
Carters Tyres vacated 40 Lincoln
Street (adjacent to VTNZ and across from
Palmers Garden Centre) in March and
this property quickly generated significant
enquiry due to its high profile nature
and was promptly leased to national tyre
retailer Mag & Tyre Direct.
With wider industrial vacancy across
Hamilton City sitting at a record low level
of 1.5 percent, the demand for premises
currently outstrips available supply.
Owner occupiers within this precinct
are crying out for larger premises to support
the growth of their businesses and in
the current supply constrained market it
is challenging to find suitable properties,
both to purchase or lease – according to
Karl van Gisbergen and Scott Sander.
The power of silence
While this song is all
about making a love
connection with
dreamy eyes and soft caresses,
let’s use it as a catchy segue
into a discussion on the power
of silence in business communication.
Silence is often the shrewdest
communications approach.
And it can often be particularly
potent when you’re up
against a negative reaction.
On the surface, saying
nothing – especially when
your ire is up - might seem like
a simplistic or lazy approach.
It could even be misconstrued
by some as taking the easy
way out.
Believe me, using the silent
treatment requires carefully
planning, a heavy measure of
bravery and a confident hope
that mute patience will yield a
positive result.
So, when might silence
be the best communications
strategy?
Here are three times when it
should be considered:
Raging haters
If your business is in the public
eye, you’ll never be loved
by everyone.
Even the most well-known
brands in New Zealand – the
All Blacks, Air New Zealand -
and the world – Disney, Coca-
Cola, Google – have their fair
PR AND COMMUNICATIONS
> BY HEATHER CLAYCOMB
As the Ronan Keating hit goes: “You
say it best when you say nothing all.”
Heather Claycomb is a director of HMC Communications,
a Hamilton-based award-winning public relations agency.
share of negative public feedback
from time to time.
However, when negative
feedback switches to raging
hate, joining in the conversation
only adds fuel to the fire.
It’s best to remember if the
spewing is baseless and nonsensical
that silence will help
the person dig their own hole
while you observe from the
crest of the abyss.
Sometimes taking the
‘high road’ by not providing
a response is the best way to
chock up a communications
win.
Irrational online comments
If your company is on social
media, you know there’s no
shortage of irrational trolls
lurking around proverbial
corners. And it’s not uncommon
for them to comment on
posts with illogical, negative
remarks.
The good news is: If you’ve
built a strong online presence
and have a good number of
loyal followers, you can often
count on your fans to do the
responding for you.
What can often happen in
these situations is that your
followers who love your
brand will hit back, stick up
for your company and put the
fool back in line.
The challenge, of course, is
being patient while the online
repartee plays out.
Negative media story
From time to time, clients
have experienced a negative
media story that gets their
back up. You know, the ones
that make you want to shout:
“That’s not fair!”
The issue is that sometimes
when the facts are just slightly
out of whack but not entirely
wrong, arguing the fact will
just give the story ‘more legs,’
as we say. Debating the merits
of fairness or even going so
far as to ask for a story retraction
or correction has potential
to develop into yet another
story on the topic.
In select cases, non-response
can be the best
response. Instead, focus on
developing a raft of genuine,
good news stories to outweigh
the bad.
Finally, with all this talk
about silence, remember that
when it comes to implementing
a hushed strategy you
must be incredibly careful.
That’s because being silent
when a response is warranted
and expected can cause a lot
of damage to your company’s
reputation.
You should never go it
alone when deciding on a
communications approach.
Always discuss the pros and
cons of silence with your communications
team or external
advisor, who can lay out the
potential risks and benefits.
And it’s only when the
benefits of silence far outweigh
the threats that you can
confidentially ‘do a Ronan’
and say nothing at all.
Cambridge chamber chief
executive steps down
Tania Witheford
40 Lincoln Street, Frankton, Hamilton
NAI Harcourts Hamilton
Monarch Commercial Ltd MREINZ Licensed
Agent REAA 2008
Cnr Victoria & London Streets, HAMILTON
07 850 5252 | hamilton@naiharcourts.co.nz
www.naiharcourts.co.nz
J9234P
After nearly four years
with the Cambridge
Chamber of Commerce,
chief executive officer
Tania Witheford is stepping
down.
Tania said it has been an
absolute privilege to work with
the Cambridge business community
and the wider Chamber
network.
“It is the right time for fresh
eyes and new thinking to work
with the Executive, our strategic
partners and members to
take the Chamber to the next
level,” she said. “As Cambridge
continues to grow and
develop at an immense rate,
we cannot sit on our laurels -
we must continue to plan and
grow with it."
Cambridge Chamber of
Commerce president Phil
MacKay said Tania is leaving
the chamber in a strong position.
“We have seen significant
membership growth
and retained and grown our
strategic partners over this
period. We continue to deliver
a diverse and inclusive programme
of events and actively
engage and advocate on behalf
of Cambridge business on a
range of issues.
“We are delighted for Tania
who has accepted the role as
executive director with Community
and Enterprise Leadership
Foundation (CELF).”
Tania said this is an opportunity
for her to further contribute
by strengthening the
leadership capability of businesses
and within our communities.
The Chamber will commence
the search for its next
CEO immediately.