Ending a quarter-century in the beer garden of Eden, the Murray family has sold its hospitality portfolio including the Great Southern Hotel to Australian Leisure & Hospitality.
The family began business in the town in 1984, going on to acquire a clutch of hospitality operations, the flagship being the handsome two-storey Great Southern (GSH), which holds a commanding position on the main road through town, overlooking Calle Calle Bay.
Eden is a town of over 3,000 people on the NSW coast, just 48 kilometres from the Victorian border. The tight-knit community hit the news in January as residents were forced to evacuate to the wharf to escape bushfires. The GSH, being the only pub in town, plays a big role in the hearts of locals.
The pub offers interconnecting public and lounge bars, separate TAB area, open-style kitchen and 120-seat bistro with its own bar, gaming room with 15 EGMs – six in smoking solution, ten accommodation rooms on the upper level, car parking at the rear, and drive-through bottleshop.
In June the Murrays put their collection to market, the Hotel joined by a commercial ‘backpackers’ building on a significant adjacent lot, and the separate Southern Cellars bottleshop.
Marketing literature quoted annual combined revenues exceeding $5.8 million and an “extremely rare opportunity” for a footprint in town to hit the ground running.
ALH has been actively seeking propositions where it can capitalise on its buying power, and on the heels of its recent purchase at Narrabri takes ownership of the pub and retail liquor store, and the adjacent block, which holds development upside, for a total price believed to be mid-$5 million.
ALH has assured the people of Eden the tradition and charm of their local will be preserved, but declined to make any further comment on the purchase at this stage.
The sale was orchestrated under a conjunction agreement between Nick Tinning of Chris Tinning & Co and Nick Butler of Pub Brokers & Advisory, noting the undeniable benefits for ALH, a division of the Woolworths-backed Endeavour.
“There aren’t too many one-pub towns, especially on the beautiful south coast of NSW, and when it comes with a second, vibrant retail bottle shop, it’s an irresistible proposition for operators with scale and logistical nous,” says Butler.
