THE COLONIAL DISTRIBUTION COMPANY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2170, 26 September 1895, Page 12

THE COLONIAL DISTRIBUTION COMPANY.

(Fbou Our Own Cobkespondknt.) London, July 25. At last the long-talked of company, projected With the object of effecting a better distribution of New Zealand produce and of taking over the London business of Messrs Nelson Br<js. (Limited), has become an accomplished fact. The present title is " Tho Colonial Cjubigument and Distributing Company (Limited)," and its capital is £300,000— viz., £75,000 ia 6 per cent, cumulative i reiereuoe £5 share?, and £225.000 in" ordinary shares. There will also be £100,000 in <4 per cent, first mortgage debentures. Tho prospectus did not come out until Saturday last, and tho list opened on Wednesday, closing at 4 p.m. the same day. There was an immrdiate rush for tho prtferenre i-haree and debentures. The application! came in aa a mighty torrent. I was in the Bauk of New Zealand manager's room for some time toward the appoint* d hour of closing, and he And the company's broker (Mr Green well) weie j almost "snowed up " with the avaUncl.e of applicitiou forms. They had their hauds full, too, in makiug the allotment, for the whole of the debenture and preference shares wera applied for several limes over. It m\y ba asked, "What of the ordinary ■barei ?" These dj nof. come on the market at all. They aie all held bj Bit s*rs Nc'son Bros., who take thvm in part pnjmeutot the purchase money for' their London business, vtith its goodwill, stock, and plant. The price to bs paid to Messrs Nelson Bros, is £285,000. As the "ordinary" shares amount to £Vi 25,000, that leaves a balance of £60,000, which is to be paid in c&sh to Messrs .Nelson Bros., who on their part pay all expenses up to allot meut (excepting ttampduty and registration) Tuus lout of the £100.000 debenture money, £63.000 will go to Messrs Nelson Bros., leaving the 'other £40,000 and the £75,000 preference shares for the working capital of the new company. No surprise is expressed generally that the thing has gone off so well. It is put forward very attractively, and the floating operations have been well engineered. The Bank of Ntw Zealand has had the matter in Laud, and with a lull kDowltdge of what was needed has ".done the needful" with entirely successful results. At the same time the investment looks good enough to tempt anybody. The debentures brar interest at 4£ jer cent., and are redeemable at 105. The preference shares are entitled to a cumulative dividend of 6 per ceut., and rank, as to both capital and dividend, in priority to the ordinary shares. Thus all the new investors are to come in before MtSi ra Neleon Brop. get a shilling of dividend. It ii certified by an emiui-nt firm of chaiteted accountants that thy n> tp'oats of Nelson Bro?.' English storage and ctnmisiion bu-iness were £30,188 for 1893, and £32,683 for 189*. A certidcite has also been given as to tLe compltteness, excellence, and thoroughly up-tj-dato character of tho London stores aud plant. As objects of the new company the following are specified :—": — " To improve and incroise the present facilities for the sale and dutributiou in Great Britain *nd Ireland and elsewhere of colooial products, including meat, daicy produce, fruit, &c, and to secure the co-operation of the shippers of such produce by allocating to them a share of the profits, after providing for the deLenture iaterest and the dividend on the prefereuoa shares, contingent on the an ount of business which they may transact through the company, from which it h believed a large accession of business will result." The company IS bound down to do business only in storing and Belling on commission on colonial pr< duds, and cannot ever invest more than £25,000 in the actual purchase ef pioduce. AH the meat from Messrs Nelson Bros.' freezing works in New Zealand is to come fo the new company, and also th-ir rights to the use Df Mr E. N. Ntlsou's patent defro.ting process. Mr C. R. Valeiitiue will " run " the co npan}*'s dairy produce d.partnient. Messrs J. O Ward (Colonial Trtß'nrtr), J. MKfi.zie (Minister for L»nds), and W. N;'s >n (of Nt- s >v Bros ) are to be the Advisory Board in New Zoi'nnd. A good deal of d fliculty was cxporicKced in allotting tho shares owing to the Urge number of "good" applications. -The applications for tho preference shares were in every case from good and strong men, and averaged 75 to each applicant. 7 he debentures were alfo in active demand, and virtually the whole of the stock offered was sought by people of meaus who ( wanted safe investments. Tho speculative i element seems to have been largely absent 1 . All i

this should bode well to the fortunes of the new undertaking, which ought to have in it tho potentiality of much benefit to the colony and colonial producers.