Southern Highlands identity Tom Porter has been sold his Moss Vale Hotel to a Sydney-based hotelier looking to relocate his family to the region.
After three and a half decades on the job, Porter listed the pub last month, citing his impending retirement. Inexorably linked to the place, he is pleased his legacy will be in good hands.
“My family and I have thoroughly enjoyed our 35 years at the Moss Vale Hotel,” says Tom Porter.
“A lot of blood, sweat and tears goes into owning and operating a hotel for this length of time. Accordingly, there are countless happy moments and memories attached to this place for my family.
“However, it’s time for us to pass the torch onto someone else, and we’re delighted that that person is a successful hotelier.”
A two-storey Hotel was the first licensed premise in the fledging town of Moss Vale, the licence issued in 1866, ahead of the new railway station in 1867.
Moss Vale has grown to be a community of around 9,600 residents, inland from Shellharbour and Wollongong, around 120 kilometres south-west of the Sydney CBD.
Commonly known as the “Pink Pub” it still occupies the same 1,521 sqm site, adjacent to the Moss Vale train station, and is the only hotel within the retail and commercial precinct.
It holds a midnight liquor licence and enjoys a balanced mix of trade across bar, food, gaming, wagering and retail liquor, and counts 12 upstairs accommodation rooms, currently dormant but able to be reactivated.
The sales literature suggested annual revenues circa $5.2 million.
The on-market campaign through HTL Property’s Blake Edwards and Sam Handy reportedly attracted strong interest from both local and Sydney-based hoteliers, resulting in several offers to purchase.
“Whilst we were anticipating a strong degree of local interest in the Moss Vale Hotel, we fielded plenty of interest and several offers from Sydney, Canberra, Queanbeyan, Wollongong and Goulburn,” notes Edwards.
“This again underscores the fact that demand is still prominently outstripping supply for quality assets such as this.”
Agents would not be drawn on the sale price except to say it was in line with market guidance, which sources say was circa $16 million.
The successful purchaser requested his name not be revealed at this stage, ahead of potential relocation plans into the area.
