New Lion Emerges in the Richmond Jungle

HTL Property is delighted to announce the sale of the Richmond Inn Hotel on behalf of the highly regarded Tilley & Wills Hotel group. The successful divestment follows a competitive sale process curated by HTL Property Directors Dan Dragicevich, Sam Handy and Blake Edwards; and which generated interest from a range of industry participants, with the eventual purchaser being a very experienced local operator.

“It was a difficult decision for us to sell given how good the local community has been to us during our tenure, however as a group we are continually looking for new and scalable opportunities in bigger markets; and in particular South-East Queensland, which has been very good for us, so we will continue to assess opportunities up there” noted Tilley & Wills CEO, Nick Wills.

Set on a 2,996* sqm corner site, the large-format suburban hotel is located within Richmond’s main commercial and retail precinct; adjacent to both ISPT’s Richmond Marketplace shopping centre and Richmond train station. The newly renovated Hotel offers a public bar and bistro, with a recently developed and extensive beer garden; and generates ~$6.3 million in annual revenues across bar, bistro, gaming, wagering and accommodation.

“Simon and Nick have done a great job repurposing the Ricky Inn – expanding the alfresco areas, and activating the food offering at the venue especially. Despite its seasonally climatic challenges, the Hawkesbury region continues to attract market interest given its pub-friendly demography and population growth story” advised HTL Property Director Sam Handy.

The successful purchaser is local publican “Lion Heart” Luke Ainscough, who rose to fame during the 2021 Hawkesbury River Flooding event after ferrying people to safety and supplies to stranded people and animals in his private helicopter.

“I grew up in the Hawkesbury, it’s my home, I love both it and the people. All I want is a venue for locals which is owned and operated by a local” commented successful purchaser, Luke Ainscough.

“We are going to keep spending money and reinvesting in the pub. We’re currently planning on installing new kid’s play equipment, so that families feel more comfortable and we will be working on other exciting changes in the future” Ainscough continued.

“At HTL, we have enjoyed a strong run of sales results to close out the Calendar Year; and which separately speaks to the resiliency and attractiveness of the asset class, and consequently we are continually working with both new entrants and established groups looking to increase their foothold in the sector” noted HTL Property National Director, Dan Dragicevich.

“Our view is that the next 12 months will see continued transactional activity as expanding Hotel groups continue to emerge and established operators look to refine and rebalance their respective portfolios” concluded Dragicevich.

End.

*Approx.