Sydney hotelier Brendan Lawless is following the money, purchasing Tweed Heads beauty the Ivory Tavern – with options.
Lawless Hotels is expanding on its NSW north coast operations with the Ivory, having bought Mullumbimby’s Middle Pub in 2013 from Redcape, just 50 kilometres south.
Idyllically positioned beside and over the magnificent Tweed River, which reaches the Pacific just a kilometre north, immediately below the Queensland border, the Ivory is a destination on the waterway, and has direct access from a 32-berth marina.
Occupying a huge 8,800 m² site, the Tavern features a 200-seat restaurant, public and lounge bars, gaming room with 14 EGM authorities, and a large wrap-around deck overlooking the river.
“The Ivory ticked all the right boxes for me and was exactly what I was looking for as my second venture in the area,” says Lawless.
“It’s not every day you find a waterfront hotel with a marina and the flexible layout will allow me to reposition the hotel and design, to offer a far superior concept to the public.”
The vendor is a Brisbane-based developer who had been operating the pub as a freehold going concern. Lawless Hotels have the option to purchase the freehold in the near future, which they are likely to do.
The off-market sale was managed by CBRE Hotels associate director Glenn Price, who notes the continued flight of capital from the capitals.
“There has been a continual march north of Sydney-based capital in the past two years, as hoteliers look for value outside of the Sydney Metropolitan region.
“In the case of northern NSW, the region is in in the enviable position of attracting not just NSW-based hoteliers, but also Queensland-based publicans looking to get a foothold in what is traditionally a tightly held market.”
The new operators have begun the immediate installation of a smoking solution and updated equipment in the gaming room, and creation of a bespoke function space for the hotel, catering to riverside weddings and occasions.
There is a new menu, and the bottleshop has also been closed to make way for a dedicated kids’ area to better attract families.
