By Vanessa Cavasinni, editor Australian Hotelier
The entire Prentice Hotel Group portfolio is up for sale.
Tony Prentice has placed his entire five-pub portfolio on the market, stating that “there is a need for me to slow down and run a slower race.”
The Prentice Hotel Group consists of five pubs throughout Queensland, from the Weeroona Hotel Motel, 25km from the Brisbane CBD, to the Criterion Hotel in Warwick in the Southern Downs region.
Prentice hopes that a younger hotelier will continue to develop the pubs.
“I love the industry however I have had my time and I would like to see some new enthusiastic buyer or group reap the benefit of some new ideas for the hotels and also utilising the balance land for development. All the hotels are in growth areas.”
The hotels are for sale individually or in one line, through an EOI campaign handled by Andy Nason at Power Jeffrey & Co. There are 119 gaming machines in total spread out between the five venues, including 35 each at the Weeroona Hotel Motel, Walloon Saloon and Criterion Hotel.
“From a hotelier’s point of view the upside in gaming is real and tangible. We have only in the past month embraced the new gaming technology and replaced some old machines and it has reaped rewards very quickly and in a matter of weeks, so any publican that really understands gaming will see this straight away,” said Prentice.
Prentice also points out that there are development opportunities for a few of the venues, that come with larger blocks of vacant land, like the Commercial Hotel in Gatton, which sits on a 1401 sqm corner block.
“The balance of land at Haigslea, Walloon and Goodna are open to lots of different development ideas subject to council approval so there is future upside with regard to development of accommodation, service stations shopping centres, RV Parks etc.”
Nason is confident there will be plenty of interest in the portfolio.
“Given early indications of domestic economic improvement coupled with low interest rates, we believe this hotel portfolio will provide further stimulus for a new and exciting phase for the Queensland hotel industry.”
This is the first time in eight years that a significant portfolio of hotels will be submitted for sale on a freehold going concern basis individually or in one line in Queensland, since the Ryan Hotel Group went into receivership.
The EOI campaign will end on 6 July. The entire portfolio sales are expected to exceed $25 million.