Laundy family spends $13m on Lake Macquarie hotel
Danielle Richardson, the daughter of publican Arthur Laundy, with her husband, Shane, have bought the Orana Hotel at Blacksmiths, 25 kilometres south of Newcastle, for $13 million.
At 20 Pacific Highway, on the V-intersection of Piriwai Street, the venue contains a bar with 11 electronic gambling machines, kitchen and beer garden.
The 3000 square metre block also includes a drive through bottle shop and small staff car park.
JLL’s Kate MacDonald and John Musca represented the vendors which paid $4.2m in 2017.
That seller, Pelathon Pub Group – a partnership between ASX listed BlackWall Property Funds and hotelier Jaz Mooney – acquired it from receivers the year earlier, then renovated.
Renovation planned
Between Swansea and Belmont, the Orana Hotel was marketed for its potential to generate $100,000 in weekly revenue, ex-GST.
Up to a quarter of its income could come from gaming.
“Danielle and I are very excited to have found this little gem and we love how the current owners have transformed [it] into a great family friendly hotel,” Mr Richardson said.
“We plan to keep the building on this proposition and further make it a great social hub for the community of Blacksmiths and the wider Swansea Belmont region,” he added.
The deal comes two weeks since we reported Ms Richardson’s brother, Stu, and father, were part of a consortium to have paid over $26m for the freehold going concern of the Thomas Blamey Tavern, at Wagga Wagga (story continues below).
Last November, the family acquired Orange’s Canobolas Hotel for over $24m, and the Cabbage Tree Hotel, north of Wollongong, for $11m.
Not long earlier the group outlaid $38m for the Woy Woy Tavern – on the coast, about 80kms south of Blacksmiths.
North of Sydney Laundy Hotels, whether independently or as part of a syndicate, has in recent years also picked up the Lennox Hotel, at Lennox Head, and Hotel Illawong at Evans Head.
String of Newcastle deals
The Orana Hotel sale comes three months since Newcastle’s historic Lucky Country Hotel sold to hospitality entrant Partners Group Australia for a speculated $20m.
Another new pub group, Reklaw Hotels, also chose the area for its maiden venue – paying $16m for the Duke of Wellington at New Lambton, seven kms west of Newcastle.
Mid last year we reported veteran hotelier Mike Angus banked c$6m from the historic Grand Hotel in Newcastle East after 33 years of operation.
Coincidentally, JLL brokered or was co-agent, on these four deals.
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