From humble plumber to supermarket baron

A St Albans plumber has made a bucketload of cash buying and selling supermarkets.

Emmanuel Zahra has spent 40 years clearing blocked drains and installing toilets, but it’s been a much less liquid trade that’s made him his millions.

While he’s still plumbing by trade, his latest property deal has left him particularly flush — adding $2 million to the $9.75 million he splashed on the Woolworths Hadfield store he bought just two years ago.

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And he’s got plans on expanding his supermarket pipeline.

“This is just the beginning — I’m going to buy half a dozen of these things,” he says.

“If another opportunity comes around, I’ll buy one.”

He’s advised others – plumbers inclusive – to show some “guts” and not to “shy away” from big business deals like supermarkets.

Plumber Emmanuel Zahra made a $2m profit in two years with the sale of the Woolworths Hadfield site.

“I actually feel it’s easier to do big business deals rather than small residential transactions,” he says.

“There’s less competition, and supermarkets offer secure returns while Woolworths is a reputable company.”

A local investor recently bought the supermarket from him for $11.75 million, via CBRE, who also sold the store on a 5600sqm block to Zahra two years ago, on May 19.

The property, which is leased to Woolworths for one more year, marks the second freestanding supermarket sale in Victoria this year, with Coles in Clayton selling for $17.1 million in March.

CBRE’s Joseph Du Rieu says demand for grocery stories is stronger than ever and interest is coming from private investors rather than big companies.

Plumber Emmanuel Zahra pictured with retail investment agent Joseph Du Rieu. Picture: Ian Currie.

“People are seeking these stores as wealth creation vehicles,” he says.

“If someone’s made a lot of money in business, they don’t want to put that money back in the bank for 2% interest.

“They want to put it into bricks and mortar, and to somewhere where it’s safe.

“Grocery tenants are very strong — after all, people always have to eat — and there’s a lot of money to be had in these passive investments.”

Du Rieu says Zahra is definitely no ordinary plumber, describing him as “one of the great Aussie success stories”.

“With Woolworths Hadfield, he turned it around and made some money on it,” he says.

“The first price of $9.75 million was a big price but to sell it for $11.75 million is outrageous.”

This article from the Herald Sun originally appeared as “Local plumber making a splash in the Melbourne supermarket game”.