Regional pub group Harvest Hotels has spent $29 million on its second pub in Wagga Wagga in the NSW Riverina.
The Victoria Hotel has a prime position in the Wagga CBD and is Harvests’ second investment in the region following its acquisition of The William Farrer Hotel in July last year.
‘The Vic’ will bring Harvests’ current portfolio to a total of seven regional pub assets, and is the third acquisition to be made by Harvests’ second pub Fund which took over The Woy Woy Hotel, Woy Woy and The Northside Hotel, Albury in December.
The Vic is a large format pub and it has a separate cocktail bar known as The Loft on the first floor, as well as a public bar with TAB and viewing facilities, and an undercover beer garden and bistro.
“We’ve loved getting to know the locals, other business operators, community groups and the wider Wagga region since taking over The Farrer in mid-21,” Harvest Hotels directors Chris Cornforth and Fraser Haughton said.
“Wagga is such a major service centre and is continuously evolving as more and more people, businesses and industries shift towards regional areas.
“We see a lot of opportunity and growth in this region which gives us confidence to invest further in Wagga, and we hope we can add value to the community and its growing social and hospitality scene.”
The purchase was brokered by HTL’s Sam Handy, and Harvest will take over The Vic from Waratah Hotel Group on Monday 23 May, and it has some capital improvements planned.
“The Waratah Group has operated the pub exceptionally well for a number of years. It’s a staple of the town, and we eager to keep building on the quality work they’ve done to date,” the directors said.”
Post Office Hotel in Gulgong
The Post Office Hotel in Gulgong has also been sold by the Brown family after nine years of ownership to a private investor.
Gulgong is located north-west of Mudgee and is home to around 130 National Trust listed buildings.
Local publicans Brad and Kim Brown had invested significantly in the venue, creating a rustic bar area and a new take-away bottle shop, according to JLL Hotels which managed the sale.
The hotel occupies a 1,834sqm site on a prominent corner position, and includes an active DA for accommodation development, and includes seven gaming machine entitlements.
JLL Hotels executive, Greg Jeloudev said, “The sale of the Post Office Hotel is representative of the heightened market conditions due to record low interest rates, increased domestic expenditure and the diminishing supply of gaming entitlements.
“Vendors with a short to medium term investment horizon are identifying these market dynamics and acting accordingly.”
