A rare Melbourne freehold going concern has come to market, as the Bagios family look to part with the prized Coppersmith Hotel in South Melbourne.
Set between the CBD and Albert Park, The Coppersmith occupies a prime 290sqm lot close to the tram line and Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre, South Melbourne Market, boutique shopping strips and galleries.
Dubbed a ‘perfect urban oasis’ it is central to a part of town that caters to all segments, popular with corporate markets and leisure.
The multi-level building boasts around 1,000sqm of floorspace and 430+ capacity, throughout its bar and bistro, Cellar Dining Room offering a private dining and function space, and Rooftop Bar, with uninterrupted views of the Melbourne skyline and Albert Park Lake.
There are also 15 luxury boutique rooms on the upper levels, designed by Hassell Worldwide, which took out the 2016 World Luxury Hotel Awards.
The building has undergone some exterior changes over the decades, appearing to be originally designed in the Victorian Italianate style of the 1880s.
George Bagios has owned the property since 2005, and in 2012 he began the design process for a complete rebuild.
After leaving almost nothing but the two front walls, a new Coppersmith emerged on the 4th of July, 2014 – following a “Boots and suits” soft opening a week prior, attended by everyone from the architects to the plumbers.
Bagios hails from Perth, and while he used to regularly fly back, he has not been able to in a while. The border closures saw him miss both his niece’s and his son’s weddings, and with his parents now in the 80s he feels it’s time to reconsider priorities.
“It makes you think about a lot of things, and family is more important than anything else,” he says.
“I love our hotel and I’m happy to stay, but my wife wants to return and a happy wife is a happy life!”
Having rebuilt the pub from top to bottom, Bagios disclosed he “knows where all the bodies are buried” and feels it’s better to make a clean break than stay on as a landlord.
Moving back to Perth, he plans to take a year off, although that may be after family plans to build a 22-storey apartment block.
“It’s a great little business, and Melbourne’s so fantastic with hospitality,” says Bagios.
The sale campaign is being managed by CBRE Hotels’ Mathew George and Scott Callow, who suggest the f&b side of the business still holds plenty of opportunity for growth. They expect a lot of interest on the rare Victorian freehold.
“City-fringe venues remain highly sought after – particularly those with a good spread of departmental revenue streams,” notes George.
The freehold going concern of the Coppersmith Hotel is being sold via Expressions of Interest, closing Thursday, 7 July.
