Dubbo’s Western Star is the latest from the MPK stable to be bought by newcomers IMG Hotels, following their major portfolio purchase earlier this year.
In April news emerged of sale of the whole freehold going concern portfolio of Nick McKechnie and Nelson Kelly’s MPK Hotels’ NSW pubs to the newly-formed syndicate Investment Management Group Hotels (IMGH), in a deal thought to be circa $75 million.
MPK divested the Royal at Orange, Dudley at Bathurst, Castlereagh at Dubbo, and the Federal hotels at Wellington and Mudgee, leaving the group with two leaseholds, being the Edinboro in Bathurst, purchased early 2019, and Dubbo’s Western Star Hotel.
Canberra-based IMGH is led by Andrew Turnbull and Matthew Clowry, bringing experience in fund management and financial services, property development, HR and hospitality.
The MPK acquisition was the group’s foray into hotels, driven by its attraction to the growth throughout the central west of NSW, the package bringing a healthy spread of earnings across food, beverage, accommodation and bottleshop departments, and gaming counting 110 poker machine entitlements across the five hotels.
Separately, the two-storey Western Star Hotel came to market, in an agreement between the freeholder owner and MPK as the operator to sell a re-stapled freehold going concern.
The large family friendly pub sports decorative iron lacework balustrades on the upper level and classic street level tiles, around a public bar with TAB and KENO, gaming room with 15 PMEs, kids’ playground, and expansive, versatile function space upstairs.
It has been owned by the Ashley family for 32 years, in recent years under lease to MPK, and was anticipating sale price circa $7 million.
McKechnie made it clear anyone looking to buy the FGC would “be bidding against us”.
IMGH has now completed purchase of the additional MPK operation, with the freehold, for a price believed to be in line with market guidance. The group reportedly has no immediate plans for change, eager to continue to service the community while building on the offering.
McKechnie engaged Nick Butler of Pub Brokers & Advisory on the previous portfolio sale, and the Western Star was sold through Manenti Quinlan in conjunction with PB&A.
“Being the first time the freehold had been offered in 32 years, we are extremely grateful and honoured to be part of the sale, and look forward to seeing what the next chapter brings for the hotel,” offered MQ’s Leonard Bongiovanni.
Having negotiated the portfolio sale earlier in the year, Butler says the re-stapled Star is another classic example of the whole being greater than the sum of the parts.
“I was lucky enough to spend some time at the Star with the IMG boys, who always loved the hotel but needed time to bed down their five hotels in the central west. It makes perfect sense for this hotel to slot comfortably into their impressive portfolio.”
Butler says he worked closely with Bongiovanni with the shared goal of getting the best result for McKechnie and Kelly.
“Congratulations to Nick and Nelson, along with the Ashley family – the long-term custodians. I’m sure they’ll raise a glass or two to their dad’s legacy.”
