Redcape buys Maeva Hospitality pub assets to boost Queensland profile

Pub fund Redcape has pushed further into Queensland with its purchase of four Sunshine Coast hotels from Maeva Hospitality.

Redcape has bought the Baringa Tavern, one of four pubs it has purchased from the Maeva Hospitality Hotel Group.

Pub company Redcape is looking to capitalise on southeast Queensland growth, splashing out around $80m for the Maeva Hospitality Hotel Group.

The deal to buy the Maeva pubs will boost Redcape’s exposure to the growing Sunshine Coast market and diversify its $1bn-plus of pub holdings away from its core business in western Sydney’s gaming heartland.

The Maeva Hospitality Hotel Group was sold by Queensland pub figures Scott Armstrong and Richard Deery. It comprises four large-format hotels and nine associated bottle shops across the Sunshine Coast.

The pubs acquired by Redcape include the Bli Bli Hotel, the Baringa Tavern, the Parklands Tavern and the Brightwater Hotel. The four pubs were developed as greenfield sites by Maeva and sit within shopping centre precincts. They have an annual turnover north of $63m.

Mr Armstrong said the assets were some of the most recognised pubs on the Sunshine Coast and he was confident that Redcape will continue to grow them into the future.

The Bli Bli Hotel sits in the newly constructed Bli Bli Village Centre.

Redcape has been on a buying spree of late and has now picked up 10 southeast Queensland pub assets for a combined $220m. Big purchases include the Commercial Hotel (Redbank Plains), The Flagstone Tavern (Flagstone), The Lucky Tree Tavern (Durack) and The Willow Hotel (Moorooka).

“The Maeva portfolio will complement and fit nicely into our existing portfolio of high performing pubs and continues our diversification and income growth strategy,” Redcape managing director Chris Unger said.

On the back of continued strong trading and recent acquisitions, Redcape has upgraded its distribution to investors.

HTL Property directors Glenn Price, Andrew Jolliffe and Daniel Dragicevich handled the sale and said that market conditions were now favourable.

Mr Price said the Maeva portfolio had been astutely developed by the industry stalwarts and was on par with national portfolios. The pubs are also next to major residential growth precincts and have adjacent retail centres.

Mr Jolliffe noted the resurgence in investor interest and higher transaction volumes in Queensland, with more pub sales now in train.

The Bli Bli Hotel sits in the newly constructed Bli Bli Village Centre, with the hotel on 2350sq m over three levels of the five-storey building. The Baringa Tavern is located in the Baringa Town Centre in Stockland’s Aura estate.

The Brightwater Hotel has three bars, a bistro, two dining rooms, a function facility and a gaming lounge. Parklands Tavern has three function areas, an indoor and outdoor sports bar, a large kitchen, gaming lounge, a sports bar and entertaining areas.