Iris Capital has acquired the Narwee Hotel in southern Sydney for $45 million.
The hospitality and development group purchased the pub off long-term owners the Ryan family, who have owned and operated the pub for the last 34 years. The hotel was sold through a private and selective tender process led by HTL Property’s Andrew Jolliffe, Dan Dragicevich and Sam Handy.
The Narwee Hotel is a multi-storey pub on a 3370 sqm site, and is located immediately opposite the Narwee train station. It’s also a high-performing gaming pub, ranked 140 in the most recent Liquor & Gaming NSW rankings via its 30 EGMs. The hotel also has 14 accommodation rooms.
“I’m delighted to have purchased the Narwee Hotel from the Ryan family, and recognise the significance of selling a business having owned and operated it since 1987,” stated Iris Capital CEO Sam Arnaout.
“The sale process was clinical, and the impressive presentation and positioning of the asset satisfied not only our key investment criteria, but also met a geographical objective we held for that part of Sydney.”
Iris Capital already owns a couple of high-performing gaming pubs in the area, with the Riverwood Hotel (ranked 64) less than five minutes away, and the Golden Tiger Hotel in Hurstville (ranked 44) a 15-minute drive from the Narwee Hotel.
The Narwee Hotel sale reinforces current purchasing trends of A-grade hospitality properties by established operators and investors, taking advantage of historically low interest rates.
“When we consider the origin of the most recent capital deployment events, it is almost exclusively linked to leading groups such as Redcape, Merivale and Iris Capital,” stated Jolliffe.
“This is instructive on a range of levels, however most notable is the fact that some particularly experienced actors within the asset class are the ones who are prosecuting the most definitive acquisition strategies.”
It’s the second major purchase announcement for Iris Capital in as many weeks, after buying the Australian ibis hotels portfolio off AccorInvest for $180 million.