Multi-million retail investments for Nuku‘alofa [1]
Tuesday, January 30, 2001 - 10:00. Updated on Friday, January 29, 2016 - 17:02.
From Matangi Tonga Magazine, Vol. 15, no. 4, January 2001.
Millions of pa‘anga in private investment money is currently being poured into commercial development along a two kilometres stretch of Taufa‘ahau Road between the Nuku’alofa Post Office and Fanga.
Developers include, retailers, J & M Stores, Nova’s, the Discovery Corporation, Si‘i Kae Ola, and a new developer, Fund Management Ltd.
Prior to Christmas, the construction of two large stores, were completed. The J & M Store and Nova’s are retailers and wholesalers of food products.
J & M turned a traditional fale koloa into a mini supermarket with parking, and construction on the site is continuing on a second floor.
Nova’s new grocery store is an expansion. The company started off with clothing shops in central Nuku’alofa before branching out into food products, furniture and hardware products. Most of its products are imported from Indonesia, with a few selected items from Germany. Nova’s is the first in Tonga to introduce the concept of club membership, offering members a 15 per cent discount on all purchases.
Busy corner
Meanwhile, the Discovery Corporation has built a shopping complex on a prime site at the corner of Hala ‘Alai-Vahamama‘o and Hala Taufa‘ahau. Sunil Bansal and his wife, as major shareholders, have invested about $2 million in this two acre property, which is occupied by a fish packing facility, a fish and chip shop, a furniture retailer, a food store, office complex, and a service station. Sunil said other businesses would be set up in his property, including a 24-hour medical clinic, and when it is all completed investment on the property would be about $3 million.
Shopping complex
Under construction, next to the Seventh Day Adventist Church, is a new shopping complex being built by Tevita Misa Fifita. Tevita has been in the retailing and wholesaleing business for a number of years, but his biggest success came during the 1980s when he started importing second hand Japanese cars. His company Si‘i Kae Ola is responsible for importing, probably, 70 per cent of all the cars in Tonga today. Tevita was not very keen to talk about his new multi-million dollar shopping complex, before finishing the site work which included a massive landfill.
Prime land
Another major business complex is on the drawing board awaiting a decision from the Tongan Court of Appeal. The lease of a prime piece of land in the heart of Nuku’alofa, between the Pacific Royale Hotel and the O. G. Sanft property is being disputed. The 5920 sq. metres property was originally leased by the Chinese businessman Dr Sam Wong, but the lease has been bought by the Fund Management Ltd. and the Tourist Services Ha‘apai Ltd. Robyn Afeaki, of the Fund Management Ltd., at this stage, did not want to reveal her plans for the property, or the amount of investment that the two companies were going to make. Robyn said that they were eager to get started once a legal dispute over the land was settled.