Household brand Laminex has a product range which includes engineered stone, modern laminates, acrylic surfaces, timber panelling products and more. First established in 1934, Laminex is now wholly owned by Fletcher Group.  Fletcher Group are dual listed on the NZX and ASX, and operates through six divisions – Building Products, Distribution, Concrete, Australia, Residential and Development and Construction..

Challenge: Laminex occupied a modern office and warehousing facility at Murarrie, which offered approximately 18,000sqm of warehousing space with 2,000sqm of office space.  Through the Covid period, the workplace has been permanently changed, with work from home and hybrid office working models more prevalent throughout the Fletcher Group businesses. At the same time, increasing demands for construction materials and difficulties with supply chain management were placing strain on warehousing capacity across the country.  Whilst the building fabric of their existing site was struggling to service the needs of the business, the location was incredibly favourable and provided excellent supply chain logistics benefits and was favoured by the staff.

The challenge was to identify potential relocation options which offered similar location benefits but which also offered an expanded warehousing footprint and reduced office content.  Efficiency of loading areas was also of paramount importance, with multiple business units handling a range of different products occupying the same site.

Solution: As opposed to an aggressive open market brief, a more controlled process was undertaken, focussed upon critical timing and confidentiality requirements.  Fletcher Group were well advanced in their special planning, being able to provide draft layout plans and building specifications which helped to reduce the entire deal timeframe.

 Here’s the process we undertook to help Aramex address their challenges:

1. Site Analysis: Given the tight geographic region which suited the supply chain of the business, a high level analysis was undertaken to identify every site which may have suited above 5000sqm.  A detailed SWOT analysis was then undertaken on each site prior to a shortlist being drawn up. 
2. Market Research: Key market deals and details were provided to Laminex to provide an understanding at board level of where a deal was possible.  A financial aimpoint was communicated between the working group, with a stay or go tipping point identified.
3. Property Selection: After careful consideration of the available options, one identified properties was shortlisted, within the highly credentialed TradeCoast Central Development.  The subject site offered substantial tangible and intangible benefits for Laminex, and a detailed analysis of staffing needs proved that there would be minimal IR issues with a move across the Brisbane River from Murarrie to Eagle Farm.  Once a suitable working plan was agreed between the parties, pricing and lease conditions were then discussed between the parties 
4. Negotiation and Due Diligence: Anthony took the lead in negotiations as a sole brokering operator, and leveraged a long term 20 year plus relationship with TradeCoast Central

Results: Despite the exceptionally difficult construction environment, Laminex were able to secure a high quality purpose built facility which is being tailored to suit their requirements.  This facility totalled some 27,000sqm of warehousing space along with 900sqm of office accommodation.  Importantly this facility features a three sided loading configuration, with 18m wide cantilevered awnings providing for all weather loading and unloading. The location provides unparalleled exposure to the Gateway Arterial and provides efficient access for staff with excellent surrounding amenity.

The key outcomes and benefits of this collaboration included:

• Strategic Location: This transaction takes one of the last 5 hectare site parcels of land in the Australia TradeCoast off the market.  The building size and configuration ideally fit the site, ensuring no loss of efficiency for TradeCoast Central.
• Timing: By moving through a design and construct process, delivery timing of a new deal was able to be tailored to ensure best timing fit for Laminex.
• Operational Efficiency: The new facility has been designed to suit the working requirements of Laminex.  By including column free loading awnings to three sides of the building, the site will remain highly flexible into the future.

Conclusion: Anthony’s long term relationship with TradeCoast Central and 20 year market knowledge proved important in securing Laminex a purpose built facility which met their operational needs.