LAWD has today announced the appointment of vineyards and wineries specialist, Nick Butler, as Director, Agribusiness Transactions, to further enhance and refine its specialist property offering.

Highly regarded for his knowledge and understanding of the Australian wine industry, Mr Butler has held a variety of sales roles over the past 25 years, including senior positions with major real estate firms and as founder of Cogito Wines where he worked closely with boutique wine makers to promote their product to the high-end restaurant and retail markets.

Mr Butler has also played a key role in some of Australia’s most high-profile, recent vineyard and winery sales, acting on the buy-side of the Josef Chromy Wines transaction and sell-side for Stonier Vineyard, ideally positioning him to create immediate impact at LAWD.

LAWD Chief Executive Officer, Enda Foley, said Mr Butler would complement and enhance existing services across the firm’s operations.

“Nick is well-known and respected across the viticulture industry and has established strong client relationships within each of Australia’s wine regions,” Mr Foley said.

“Our Valuations professionals servicing this sector are already the most highly regarded in the country, so the development of a viticulture sales capability was a natural next step.

“Nick’s passion and expertise for his area of specialisation aligns perfectly with our growth strategy as we expand and diversify our agribusiness transactions team.”

Since inception in 2020, LAWD has quickly become a leader in specialist property with a current focus on agribusiness and development transactions, and valuations, led by some of the nation’s most prominent agents and valuers, including Danny Thomas, Col Medway, Peter Sagar, Daniel McCulloch and Tim McKinnon.

Mr Butler said combining his commitment to the winery and vineyards sector with the focus of a company strategically dedicated to real estate specialisation would provide access to an expanded pool of local and global investors to maximise service to his clients.

“Through joining what has become, in a very short period of time, one of Australia’s premier real estate firms, I will have the capacity to collaborate with an elite group of like-minded property specialists with extensive links to institutional investment and international buyers,” Mr Butler said.

“My primary focus is achieving industry-best results for new and existing clients and, by joining LAWD, I can ensure each asset placed on the market has maximum exposure to potential buyers.

“This move is not just an important opportunity for myself but also for vineyard and winery clients throughout Australia as their assets continue to develop as a real estate investment sub-class in their own right.”