By Andrew Starke
Raymond Tolcher of the corporate recovery firm Lawler Partners says it is too early to determine exactly what factors led to the demise of the popular Monkey Bar chain of hotels.
The Balmain, Chatswood and Dubbo Monkey Bars were placed into receivership after Westpac called in loans worth more than $10 million.
Contacted by TheShout, Tolcher said the receiver would need ‘two to three months’ to determine what had gone wrong with the businesses, maximize operations and build up a track record of trading.
All three pubs are likely to be sold.
Tolcher confirmed that Peter Hunt, the chain’s owner via his private company Randall, was assisting the receiver and that it was in everyone’s best interests to maximize the pubs returns.
All three Monkey Bars have been renovated in the past three years in an effort to comply with smoking regulations and attract more customers.
Earlier this year, Hunt put the Dubbo Monkey Bar Tavern on the market at the reduced price of $1.1 million, if sold with its 12 poker machines.
The chain began with the Monkey Bar in Balmain, expanding to Chatswood and Dubbo.