Wildstone announces groundbreaking sale and leaseback agreement in first Australian deal

The agreement is the first signed by Wildstone since it entered Australia’s OOH market in May, appointing industry veteran Noel Cook to head up its operations in the country. Cook has more than 30 years’ experience in Australia’s OOH sector, including over 25 years at oOh! Media – Australia and New Zealand’s leading OOH advertising company with a network of more than 35,000 locations.

Wildstone is the leading owner of outdoor media infrastructure across the UK and Europe, where an important strand to the business involves acquiring OOH infrastructure from media operators, before leasing the assets back to the operators on a long-term basis. This approach enhances operational efficiency for media operators and allows them to focus on their core business of selling OOH advertising, while benefiting from high-quality, well-maintained advertising assets.

It entered the Australian market with a plan to adopt a similar model, and it has recently joined the Outdoor Media Association as an asset owner member. The deal it has now struck with Alliance Outdoor is the first of its kind in the Australian market.

Under the terms of the deal, Wildstone will take over two sites previously owned by Alliance, fund the provision of digital boards and then lease the sites back to Alliance Outdoor, which will manage media sales.

The first site is located in Nunawading, where a single-sided digital measuring 19.99m x 4.60m will be facing the busy intersection of Maroondah Highway and Springvale Road.

The second location, a monopole site on the Craigieburn Bypass in Epping, will host a digital spectacular measuring 18.99m x 4.57m.

“We’re really excited to have completed our first deal in the market and the very first of this nature in the Australian market. Based on discussions we’ve been having with billboard owners across the states, we believe it is just the first of many and look forward to playing a significant role in the digitisation of the country’s outdoor advertising market,” said Noel Cook, Managing Director for Wildstone Australia.

Mark Buckley, General Manager at Alliance Outdoor Media Group, said: “Dealing with the Wildstone Australia team was seamless, especially because of their deep knowledge of the industry and professionalism. We hope to do many more deals with them.”

Wildstone is a leading owner of outdoor media infrastructure. The company’s portfolio of over 5,000 out-of-home advertising assets includes digital advertising screens in a variety of formats, classic billboards and super premium digital sites.

Wildstone buys and rents property sites for outdoor advertising across the UK, Europe and Australia, helping property owners generate income from their unused land or building facades in high-traffic locations.

Wildstone partners with media operators by offering new OOH locations, as well as the expertise and capital investment needed to digitise sites. This collaboration enables media owners to accelerate growth, boost revenue and concentrate on their core business of selling OOH advertising.

Wildstone is shaping the future of outdoor advertising through the digitisation of out-of-home assets. The company provides high-quality roadside media that stand the test of time, using next-generation LED screen technology that is lightweight slim, and high-performing.

For more information, please visit www.wildstone.co.uk

Alliance Outdoor Media Group is a national billboard media provider comprising Australia’s leading independent outdoor media providers.

By engaging its network of independent owners, it allows advertisers to access some of the best outdoor assets in each market across Australia and receive the most up-to-date local insights to ensure they are positioning their brand squarely in front of their target audiences for maximum impact.

Source: Wildstone