Hotelier of the Year Matt Coorey has formed a partnership with the Malouf’s Royal Hotels for acquisition of the Shearer’s Arms Tavern south-west of Brisbane.
The big-ticket sale is the second in a week in the region, following HPI’s deal to buy Monarch’s Acacia Ridge Hotel freehold for $20 million.
Coorey is the reigning Queensland Hotels Association (QHA) Hotelier of the Year, honoured for his work at the successful Boardwalk Tavern on Hope Island, around 20 kilometres further south-west.
Shearer’s sits on a massive 1.2Ha block in Ormeau, on the M1, around a half-hour’s drive from the Gold Coast. It features multiple bars, restaurant, gaming room with 40 EGM permits, and a bottleshop.
It also holds considerable barriers to entry for competitors, and the significant commercial landholding brings considerable development potential.
Shearer’s represents the first Queensland acquisition for the Sydney-based Royal Hotels, with Coorey destined to bring his award-winning presence to operations.
“Having run the ruler across countless opportunities over the past few years, I’m delighted to now have the opportunity to pick up the reins on the Shearer’s, particularly given its close proximity to my other hotel,” Coorey says.
“My style is very hands-on and I expect the hotel and surrounding community will respond well to an owner-operator model.”
Vendors the Cornish and Murphy families commissioned HTL Property’s Glenn Price, Brent McCarthy and Andrew Jolliffe for the campaign, reportedly garnering plenty of interest from both Queensland operators and interstate groups and investment vehicles.
“The scarcity of available A-grade product meant the interest in the opportunity was so high we could have sold the asset five times over,” offered Price.
Agents would not discuss final sale price, but it was reported in the Courier as around $18 million.
