Quinn & Co have agreed to sell their thumping Windsor Castle Hotel in East Maitland for $51 million to the acquisitive Harvest Hotels, smashing the group’s own record for an inland regional pub.
Around two hours’ drive north of Sydney, ‘The Castle’ is a large-format hotel across a 6,613sqm lot, built in the 1920s. It provides public bar, a large bistro seating over 250-pax, gaming room with 30 GMEs, beer garden and enclosed outdoor courtyard, a kids’ playground, popular drive-through bottleshop, and 14 3.5-star accommodation rooms, plus plenty of onsite parking.
Looking to bolster the collection with an asset in the much sought-after Hunter Valley region, The Castle met all the right criteria for Harvest.
“We’ve been exploring prospects in the Hunter Valley for a long time now, and Maitland comfortably met our location and pub selection criteria,” explains Chris Cornforth, who fronts the group with co-founder Fraser Haughton.
“It’s a high growth, central service area that is supported by multiple industries, including education and health care, tourism, agriculture, mining, and construction.”
Vendors on The Castle were Nick Quinn and partners, who have just inked their own new acquisition in the Manning River Hotel of Taree, purchased last month for around $20 million.
After years of building the East Maitland business, Quinn & Co were tempted by Harvest’s approach and decided the divestment made sense for them.
This is the largest addition to the Harvest NSW portfolio thus far, surpassing the previous regional pub record price it set in April buying The Vic in Wagga Wagga for $29 million.
It takes the portfolio to eight venues, valued at north of $200 million.
Properties to date have come about through two investor fundraisings, offering a strong cash yield and returns of 17 per cent. The group has confirmed it will soon be reopening Harvest Pub Fund 1, believed to be looking to raise about $50 million to target pubs in Adelaide.
To date Harvest has focused on pubs in regional locations such as Wagga Wagga and Tamworth, underpinned by strong economies and growing populations, explaining that the pubs are solid businesses where investors can appreciate into what they are investing.
Harvest is due to take over at The Castle late November, catching the Christmas trade boon in an operation that reportedly generates annual EBIDTA in excess of $4 million.
“Entering a new region brings with it great opportunities of getting to know new people, working with a new team of staff, aligning with like-minded business operators, and providing support to clubs, groups, and organisations through our community partnerships program,” adds Cornforth.
The agreement was brokered by JLL Hotels’ Ben McDonald and Vice President Kate MacDonald.
“It’s been a delight to work yet again with Harvest Hotels to help secure this absolute powerhouse pub from Nick Quinn and partners, who would certainly be amongst the most well-respected operators in our game,” offered MacDonald.
