- Havana Coffee Works’ headquarters in Tory Street is for sale as founder Geoff Marsland moves on.
- Marsland sold the coffee company to Lion NZ in 2018 but is now selling his properties.
- The building, known as “The Shrine”, and its neighbour have a combined RV of just under $4m.
The building that brewed a revolution in Wellington’s coffee culture is for sale. Havana Coffee Works’ headquarters in Tory Street has hit the market, as coffee baron Geoff Marsland starts a new chapter of his life.
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That doesn’t mean the end of Havana in Wellington. The coffee company itself was sold to Lion NZ in 2018, with Marsland only now beginning to sell his eclectic collection of Wellington properties.
Marsland’s links to 163 Tory Street stretch back to 1989 when he founded Havana with former schoolmate Tim Rose. The building, which houses the company’s headquarters, is known as “The Shrine”, and Marsland acquired it and the building next door after the business outgrew its original Cuba Street premises.
Vendor Geoff Marsland bought the building after Havana outgrew its original Cuba Street premises. Photo / Supplied
Marsland: “I have always been hands-on, but I am not 20 anymore. I want new experiences, to travel, to sail, and to explore.” Photo / Supplied
Marsland told OneRoof that he had never seriously thought about selling Havana, despite numerous approaches, but a life-changing experience in 2017 made him reassess his future.
“I was approached by a few people to buy it, and I said no because it was a family business. I was approached again, still said ‘no’. Then I had a shipwreck while offshore sailing. My family thought we were dead for about 10 hours because they did not know where we were,” he told OneRoof.
“When I hit the reef, I was not thinking about my business at all, I just thought about my family. Being saved by the navy made me realise there is more to life than working. That planted the seed of thoughts about maybe selling a little bit.”
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Marsland remained a brand ambassador for Havana after selling up, but watching someone else run the business, no matter how well, has been difficult for someone who was a hands-on presence for 30 years.
Letting go of Havana HQ is his last big emotional hurdle as he embarks on a new adventure. “I have always been hands-on, but I am not 20 anymore. I want new experiences, to travel, to sail, and to explore. Selling the buildings and downsizing allows me to live differently while still appreciating what I have created.”
He’ll miss the buildings, though. “It was like Charlie in the Chocolate Factory. The interior, the music, the staff. I was there every day as the ringleader. Everyone loved their jobs. It was extremely busy, but everyone felt part of the big family.”
Marsland compares the building to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Photo / Supplied
The properties have a combined RV of just under $4m and generate an annual income of $250,000 plus GST. Photo / Supplied
He added: “The Havana building was built in 1959 as Firestone’s head office, the year of the Cuban Revolution, which was serendipitous.”
Marsland also owns the Queen’s Picture Theatre and Loretta restaurant, both on Cuba Street. They, too, could be sold in the future. “Those buildings are very individualised. The Loretta building is probably the crown jewel,” he said.
163 Tory Street and 1-3 Francis Place are being marketed by Bayleys commercial agent Mark Walker. They have a combined RV of just under $4m and come with 10 car parks and an anchor tenant in the form of Lion NZ.
The front building includes a six-bedroom apartment above and Havana Coffee’s roaster, head office, and café below. To the rear, a secondary building constructed around 1980 provides a ground-floor workshop and a first-floor apartment or office.
The annual net income is approximately $250,000 plus GST.
- 163 Tory Street and 1-3 Francis Place, Te Aro, Wellington, is for sale, tender closing December 10
