Elders has announced its intention to acquire the Charles Stewart Group, a renowned livestock and real estate agency business based in south-west Victoria, with a target completion date of 1 November 2023.
Michael Stewart (Managing Director – Charles Stewart), Brendan Rinaldi (Elders State General Manager – Victoria/Riverina).
Charles Stewart was established in 1917 and is a fifth-generation family operation, employing over 60 people across six locations in south-west Victoria: Colac, Camperdown, Geelong, Warrnambool, Hamilton and Ballarat.
The business transacts a significant amount of rural, residential, and commercial property sales and leasing, and is a highly respected major livestock agency in the region.
Charles Stewart will retain full ownership and operation of its livestock lending facility.
All management and staff will remain under the existing Charles Stewart brand to service its customer base throughout south-west Victoria.
CEO Mark Allison said the business has a strong history of service to the agricultural communities of south-west Victoria and will be a welcome addition to the Elders network.
“This is an exciting opportunity to strengthen Elders’ presence in Victoria with a well-respected business. Not only does it fill a key strategic gap for Elders in Victoria, it also allows for further growth opportunities in the future,” said Mr Allison.
“Elders has built a well-respected team across Victoria, led by State General Manager Brendan Rinaldi, and I expect the addition of Charles Stewart to complement this, with the team continuing on to ensure high-quality service for clients.”
Elders has been operating in Australia for over 184 years and has a proven track record of excellence in agribusiness, winning most trusted agribusiness brand in 2023.The company's footprint has been expanding steadily in recent years, in line with Elders' Eight Point Plan focusing on strategic growth in key locations across Australia.