Date£º
2015-07-07 15:10 Source£º
decanter Author:
Richard Woodard Translator:
The founder of New Zealand¡¯s Yealands Wine Group insists it will be ¡®business as usual¡¯ after selling an 80% stake in the business to a local electricity company.
Copyright owned by Yealands Winery
Peter Yealands said he had been looking for ¡®investment options¡¯ for the company since last December, before selling the stake for NZ$89m to Marlborough Lines Limited.
¡®I am delighted to keep the company in local hands and to bring a partner into our business that shares our beliefs and growth aspirations,¡¯ he added.
¡®I will maintain my role and shareholding in the business and Jason Judkins (CEO) will also now have a shareholding, and essentially it will be business as usual.¡¯
Marlborough Lines MD Ken Forrest said he had been impressed by Yealands¡¯ achievements and growth plans, adding: ¡®Opportunities to invest in the electricity industry are limited, and this led to us looking to other options.¡¯
Yealands Wine Group is the country¡¯s sixth biggest wine exporter, shipping more than 1m cases of wine a year to more than 80 countries.
Formed when Yealands Estate acquired Hawke¡¯s Bay winery Crossroads and Marlborough brand The Crossings in 2011, the company owns more than 1,100 hectares of planted vineyards in Marlborough and Hawke¡¯s Bay.
Yealands said the company was performing ¡®well ahead of forecasts¡¯, with strong demand from domestic and overseas markets.
He added: ¡®Personally, I am really looking forward to getting out from behind my desk more often so that I can again develop more vineyards to assist the rapid growth of our business, in addition to getting more into market.¡¯