Panchia Building/Hans Health Foods, 202-204 Devon Street East (1969)

This two-storey commercial building at 202-204 Devon Street East was built in 1969 for Panchia Brothers, of Auckland. A building permit was issued to N. Panchia & Co. for a commercial shopping block on 2 April 1969, the builder was Hoyle Construction and the estimated cost $20,000.  

Notes on the building file suggest that there were plans to open restaurant/nightclub called "the hungry i", in the building. It's not known if this happened. 

Another building permit was issued to N. Panchia on 4 May 1970 for alterations to the building at a cost of $1,350, B.J. Hunger was the builder. In 1971 Newton King Ltd. moved into the building.  

About 1980, 'Hans' Health Foods' moved into the Panchia Building. In 1974 Hans Wagner had set up a small business in New Plymouth importing herbal health supplements. By 1982, the business was said to be the largest importers and distributors of health aids in New Zealand, as well as exporting vitamins, minerals and herbs to Australia. 

Wagner was passionate about the health benefits of Kyolic garlic, eventually becoming known as the 'Kyolic garlic king'. In the late 1980s he established Pro-Biotics, a New Plymouth business importing and exporting to health food shops throughout New Zealand. After closing the shop in Devon Street East, he and business partner, Rachel Nielsen, operated The Health Shop in Centre City.

On 29 March 1995, Hans Wagner and his daughter Bliss were killed in an air crash while flying home to New Plymouth from Auckland. The twin-engined Beechcraft Queenaire Excalibur, owned by New Plymouth company Kiwi West, but on charter to Air New Zealand subsidiary Eagle Air, crashed into a paddock near Hamilton. Another Taranaki resident, Esther Jones from Hāwera, also died in the accident.  

Related items:

New buildings planned (Taranaki Herald 2 April 1969)

Hans' Health Foods Advertisement, City of Challenge, New Plymouth Public Relations Office, 1983. (TRCT993.482 NEW)

Dad and daughter's travelling life ends in tragedy (Daily News 30 March 1995)

Crash plane fuel proves elusive (Daily News 1 April 1995)

Colleague pledges to continue towards crash victim's goals (Daily News 4 April 1995)

Hamilton wreckage moved (Daily News 3 April 1995)