Historic Ashburton shop sells for first time in 80 years

An Ashburton shop among the first built in the popular High St shopping strip, is up for grabs for the first time in 80 years. 

Dating back to 1925, photos of the single-fronted property at 243 High St show it standing alone a year before most of the neighbouring shops in the strip were built in 1926.

Nancye Allegro uncle bought the shop for his real estate firm in 1938, and the shop dates back to when the surrounding suburb of Ashburton was being subdivided and turned into new housing sites.

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The shop has since passed through the family to Allegro’s 98-year-old mother, who decided to sell the shop so she could see her family enjoy the proceeds.

“She’s a very generous person,” Allegro says.

The High St store as it stands today.

“And she wanted to see it happen and she wanted to see us benefit.”

Allegro says even selling for the right reasons at the right time it would be hard to say goodbye.

“It’s definitely like saying goodbye to part of the family,” Allegro says.

“You do feel a bit of a wrench, but it’s just one of those things.”

The store has been home to a Tatts agency since the 1980s, but Allegro recalls her mother agonising over whether the then relatively new company would be a reliable tenant.

The shopping strip had filled in a few years later.

Teska Carson director Matthew Feld says in the space of a week the shop has grabbed the attention of a mix of local buyers.

“Very rarely do shops come up in that area, and we have had a good amount of inquiry,” Feld says.

Prospective buyers are tight-lipped over the potential price, but Feld says he sold a florist on the same strip a few doors down for more than $3 million earlier this year.

The shop, which has four carparks, goes to auction on Wednesday, August 29, at 1pm.