Businessmen press home attack in South Island liquor stoush

By Chris Hutching

Friday 12th April 2002

Canterbury Hospitality Group is fighting back in a liquor discount war that has broken out in Christchurch and will soon erupt in Dunedin.

It was sparked recently when northern interloper, The Mill Liquorsave, of New Plymouth, took over the lease at a major wholesale outlet in the central city on the corner of Fitzgerald Ave and Cashel St and embarked on an expensive advertising campaign. The Mill is also planning to build a Dunedin outlet on the former Pizza Hut site fronting Andersons Bay Rd, lifting the number of outlets it controls nationally to 19. The Mill will also soon open a third Auckland outlet.

In Christchurch, Canterbury Hospitality is challenging The Mill by taking over the lease of the nearby Imperial Robbie Burns wholesale outlet in Barbadoes St, which will become its fighting discount brand.

Canterbury Hospitality has also taken over the lease of the Carlton Hotel, which has operated under the DB-backed Liquorland brand and was one of the biggest outlets in the city trading under that banner. Canterbury Hospitality has now replaced the Liquorland brand at the Carlton with the Lion-supported Super Liquor brand in a move considered to be a blow for DB.

The value of the two deals was nearly $2 million and takes the number of wholesale outlets operated or owned by Canterbury Hospitality in the city to nine. The company also owns and operates another seven restaurant or bars.

The main shareholders of Canterbury Hospitality company are local businessmen Ian Mackenzie and partner John Butterfield.

Mr Butterfield owns one of the city's most expensive residential properties in Fendalton and is also an inner-city commercial property investor who has announced plans to build a 15-level office tower near Victoria Square.

Meanwhile, The Mill Liquorsave's general manager, Stephen Fromont, said the liquor discounter, owned by the Simkin family, would expand with new opportunities. Local managers had autonomy to source products from whomever they wished. They were in charge of their own marketing.

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