The distinctive building housing the instantly recognisable premises behind New Zealand’s biggest fast food chicken retail brand has been placed on the market for sale.
The KFC outlet in the suburb of Hamilton East has been serving fried chicken and gravy from the location for more than 30 years. KFC opened its first New Zealand branch in Auckland in 1971, and has now expanded to more than 100 stores nationwide - still serving up the Colonel’s famous ‘secret’ recipe coated with 11 different herbs and spices.
Located on the corner of Grey Street and Wellington Street, the highly visible Hamilton East KFC location consists of a 230sq m single-storey premises sitting on some 1024 sq m of leasehold land. The premises sits just a few doors down from fellow convenience food operator McDonald’s on the main arterial route.
In New Zealand, KFC is owned and operated by parent company Restaurant Brands New Zealand Limited, which is listed on the New Zealand Stock Exchange. Restaurant Brands New Zealand also operates the Pizza Hutt and Carl’s Jr fast food chains.
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The KFC Hamilton East buildings at 275 Grey Street are now being marketed for sale at by auction on June 3 through Bayleys Hamilton. Salesperson Josh Smith said the property was indicative of KFC locations nationally – which traded under a generic proven design and décor matrix.
“KFC is one of New Zealand’s most instantly recognisable consumer brands, and its tenancy at Grey Street stretches well back to another generation – indicating the continuing strength and longevity of the marque,” Smith said.
“Externally, there is prominent stand-alone signage on the edge of the property, with hedging around the edge of the building, a drive-through foodservice option running around the perimeter of the property, and a sealed customer car park.
“Additionally, mezzanine-level branding with Colonel Sanders’ trademark smiling visage is affixed to the front and sides of the building – the identical sort of branding you would see at any KFC outlet in the country.
“Internally, the building is split into three distinct zones – encompassing customer seating and bathrooms, the food preparation and serving area with its fryers, grills, and front of house service counters, and finally the food storage units and staff amenity areas.
“A recent addition to the long-standing building is the is the covered seating space creating a sheltered outdoor area. Large floor-to-ceiling glass windows face directly out onto the wide Grey Street pavement, and Steel Park on the other side of the road.”
KFC is currently on a lease running through to 2028, generating annual rental of $93,606 plus GST and operating expenses. The original core of the Grey Street premises has a new building standards rating of 45 percent, and has been expanded over the years as the tenant’s activities and customer base grew.
The generally square shaped corner premises is zoned Commercial 8A under the Hamilton City Council plan and has a vast catchment area of residential dwellings – including much of Hamilton’s student population who are avid supporters of KFC product.
Such is the popularity for KFC among many Kiwis, that when the country returned to level 3 trading conditions after last year’s initial nationwide Covid-19 lockdown, hungry customers queued for hours outside KFC stores to once again get a taste of the takeaway fried delight.
“The property, as befitting of the KFC brand globally, has been immaculately maintained inside and out throughout its lifespan and is a very hands-off investment opportunity,” Smith said.
With a population of approximately 175,000 people, Hamilton is New Zealand’s fourth largest city - now linked to Auckland by a daily commuter train service. In recent years, the city’s urban growth pattern has seen major new residential expansion activity in the suburbs of Rototuna and Peacocke, while industrial and commercial property growth has occurred around Te Rapa locale to the north of the city, and south around the airport precinct.
