Surfwear giant to sell Torquay headquarters

A consortium of Geelong private investors is set to cash out of the Torquay headquarters of Boardriders before the US-owned surf giant relocates to the Gold Coast. 

Buyers could secure the Torquay corporate head office complex for significantly less than its replacement value.

Speculative investors would also get up to three years guaranteed income while they planned the future use of the 27 Baines Crescent facility as Boardriders completes its secure lease.

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The consortium, which built the complex for Quiksilver in the late 1990s, engaged Darcy Jarman, Geelong West agents Tim Darcy and Simon Jarman to handle the expressions of interest campaign closing on August 23.

The freehold property has an Industrial 3 zone and hosts the two-storey building with 6526sq m of available floorspace and on-site parking for 175 cars.

Agent Tim Darcy says it would cost at least $20 million to secure a 2ha industrial site and build a similar complex in Torquay today.

The tenants have invested heavily fitting out the building, which includes traditional office space, converted warehouse office space, an auditorium, staff lounge and kitchen, storage and workshop areas.

Darcy says the property would suit speculative investors, while potential end users could also secure corporate headquarters or a site for other uses within the zoning.

“It is going to suit someone that could house at similar operation as a corporate head office,” Darcy said.

An auditorium is part of the Boardriders complex.

“It could potentially suit a government departments and also a number of institutional organisations.

“It also has the opportunity to be converted for educational purposes for schools trying to get a foothold in the area, like Deakin, or a TAFE or whatever. There is a lot of scope.”

The Industrial 3 zone allows uses including industry, warehousing, office and an education centre, though not a primary or secondary school.

Darcy says buyers could negotiate to move new tenants in to the building earlier than 2021.

He says Boardriders’ impending departure from Torquay has created uncertainty over the value of the 1.95ha property, which is expected to sell significantly below replacement value.

Boardriders’ Torquay headquarters has been listed for sale through an expressions of interest campaign.

But buyers would secure a modern facility with more than $1.6 million annual income until October 2021. Boardriders also pays for land tax and building insurance on top of other outgoings. Darcy says it would cost at least $20 million to buy land and develop a similar building in Torquay today.

Darcy says Torquay is the centre of one of the fastest-growing metro-hinterland areas in the nation.

Boardriders has chosen to centralise operations in Burleigh Heads after it finalised its acquisition of Billabong in April.

The move puts the jobs of more than 100 existing local staff under threat, though Boardriders has committing to retaining a local presence in Torquay and shifting its entire distribution facility to Geelong.

Quiksilver has a long history with Torquay, after Alan Green and John Law founded the business in 1973.

This article from the Geelong Advertiser originally appeared as “Office, education are options for Boardriders’ Torquay headquarters”.