Landlord ‘bullied’ into new lease
The Warehouse Kaikohe’s landlord says he was bullied into negotiating a reduced lease with the retailer when it threatened to leave the town.
John Levers said he agreed to sign the lease at a reduced rate because of the impact the absence of the retailer would have had on the community.
‘‘The sad thing is staff were used as a pawn,’’ Levers said. ‘‘There were no negotiations; I was after the same amount that was in the lease in 2011 and The Warehouse wanted a reduced lease or threatened to shut shop.’’
The Warehouse chief executive Pejman Okhovat said the company provided its final offer to Levers last week and that offer was declined.
‘‘Based on that we had to make closure arrangements and inform our team members,’’ he said. ‘‘Following the news breaking in the media, we were contacted by the landlord with the news that he’d agree to our proposed offer.’’
‘‘We had no involvement in informing the wider public of this situation, apart from those in the community itself. We got in touch with the Kaikohe mayor to ask for his help with some alternative solutions for staying in the town, such as a possible pop-up store,’’ Okhovat said.
But Levers said he had been painted like the bad guy by the company.
‘‘They made it seem like it was up to me. They’ve used bullying tactics and I’m regretting my decision. But I was faced with financial doom if I didn’t agree.’’
Levers said the building was under a 12-year lease contract with the right of renewal every four years.
But The Warehouse wanted to cut the right of renewal to one year, and then negotiated to two years, Levers said.
Levers said he had spoken to Regional Development Minister Shane Jones, who told him it was a ‘‘waste of time’’ to take on a big corporate.
On Thursday Regional Development Minister Shane Jones said The Warehouse ran the risk of turning Kaikohe into a zombie town if it had decided to close the store.
Levers said the presence of The Warehouse was important for the community.
‘‘For the community it’s fantastic that they [The Warehouse] have decided to stay. It’s the only shopping option for everyone here. If you take out the shop, they have nothing.’’
Levers said he hoped not to have a rocky relationship with The Warehouse, as the new lease was for two years.