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VUV63,738,042

(AUD 835,000)

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Business
For Sale
Port Vila
Vanuatu

Easily managed Retail Garden Centre and Nursery (`Ground Force`) for sale in Vanuatu - a tropical island paradise and tax haven (no income tax) only 2 hours flying time from Brisbane, Australia (3 hours from Sydney). It has been owned by the current husband and wife proprietors since September, 2006 who, even though only low daily management input is required, are reluctantly selling for health reasons.

Vanuatu (voted `The Happiest Place on Earth` in 2008) is a safe, politically stable country consisting of an archipelago of 83 islands. The native islanders are Melanesian who are very friendly and peaceful and family and community-minded. The main languages spoken in this `land of smiles` are English, Bislama (much like Pidgin English) and French.

Imagine owning a business that is essentially run by a well-trained team, most of whom have been with the company for a number of years therein leaving you to devote your time to other interests and activities (such as reading a good book in the shade of a palm tree while enjoying a gin and tonic or a cold beer or two!). All this in a country where the minimum wage is just 1,200 vatu a day (equivalent to about $AUD15 a day)!

The business consists of two main road locations on a total land area of 13,500m2. One location serves as the principal retail centre (Ground Force) while the other (known as Prima Gardens) is undergoing development as a propagation facility, plant storage facility and botanical showcase. The majority of current staff have been employed in the business since 2006/7.

There is HUGE potential for business revenue expansion through the addition of other garden products, increasing plant rental sales and the continued development of the Prima Gardens property into a botanical showcase and ultimately - a favoured destination for local residents and tourists alike.

The present owners had plans to further develop Prima Gardens as a weddings venue and coffee house as there is a lot of demand for this type of attraction. One of the reasons for this is that Vanuatu is an ever-increasing popular destination for those people who desire to have a tropical island wedding or for them to renew their wedding vows. Visitor numbers to Vanuatu are increasing at an average rate of around 20% per annum and given the lack of existing ``safe`` tourist destinations, it is felt that this trend will continue as it has done for the past few years.

Facilities: The real estate component forming part of the business assets carries with it huge potential for short-to-medium term capital growth. The retail garden centre (Ground Force) is on a busy main road just 5 minutes from the city centre. The Prima Gardens facility is also only 5 minutes from the centre of town but on the main road on the other side of town and is situated adjacent to a rapidly developing commercial area and residential estates.

Competition: There is only one other similar business in Vanuatu. Generally speaking, the two businesses work more on a co-operative basis rather than as direct competitors. This competitor, with whom Ground Force has a very good working relationship, also provides landscaping advice and rental plants but has a large focus on growing for the local cut flower market, something that Ground Force doesn`t do. Additionally, Ground Force is usually the business of choice for the Vanuatu Government when it requires rental plants for special events or for Government-sponsored landscaping projects.

Growth Potential: The Prima Gardens propagation facility was commissioned in March, 2008. At the outset, a program was initiated to start growing palm trees (from seed) and other sought-after plants such as bougainvillea (from cuttings) with a view to building up in-house supplies of prime plants at different stages of growth/development. The business now has palm trees, for example, that are 5-10 years old, 2 years old, 1 year old and seedlings thereby providing customers with a wider range from a price perspective. At the same time, the business is now well-positioned to offer viable contract growing facilities for the large-scale property developments that are either underway or to commence in the near future.

Training/Support: The present owners are willing to stay on for up to one month to facilitate introductions to clients and suppliers.

The discounted asking price is $US575,000 (approx. $AUD640,000) PLUS stock inventory of approx. $US175,000 (approx. $AUD195,000) and as such is priced to sell quickly

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