UPDATE 1.55pm:
Northies Cronulla and Mona Vale hotels have been sold together for more than $57 million.
Owner, the Fernwood Group, engaged Mike Wheatley of Knight Frank and Andrew Jolliffe of Ray White Hotels to sell the hotels.
They were sold to leading publican Arthur Laundy and his son Stuart in partnership with Fraser Short, the same partnership that bought Watsons Bay Hotel for $30 million from the Doyle family in 2012.
Northies was owned originally by Tooth and Co, sold to Carlton United Breweries and then the Fernwood group 17 years ago.
Mr Wheatley described Mr Laundy as Australia’s largest hotel owner outside of Woolworths.
‘‘He owns about 40 hotels including the Steyne at Manly and Bass Hill Hotel,’’ he said.
‘‘He bought the Watsons Bay Hotel some time ago and plans to do a similar style of pub at Northies with a fairly heavy accent on food.
‘‘They generally do a good beachside pub.’’
Mr Wheatley said there had been substantial interest from publicans since the sale was announced last week.
Are you excited about the future of Northies under its new owners?
Earlier story:
THE sale of Northies at Cronulla for the first time in 17 years is expected to fetch more than $30 million for its owners.
The owner, Fernwood Hotel Group Pty Ltd, announced the sale on the weekend and agent Mike Wheatley, of Knight Frank, said there had already been substantial interest.
The group also owns Mona Vale Hotel, which is also for sale, as well as Greengate Hotel at Killara and Exchange Hotel at Balmain, which are not for sale.
Mr Wheatley said the group's partners, led by chief executive Peter Beaumont, had decided to scale back their operations to concentrate on the remaining hotels.
The marketing campaign for Northies starts Saturday in the Sydney Morning Herald and Australian Financial Review. Marketing will continue until October 15, unless sold sooner.
"We can expect a result in excess of $30 million," Mr Wheatley said.
"With something as iconic as Cronulla, don't be surprised if there is a quick sale.
"These beachside properties aren't often traded.
"Northies has never been offered to the market.
"It was operated by Tooth and Co and then Carlton United Breweries prior to Fernwood buying it 17 years ago in a deal that saw the swap of a portfolio of NSW hotels and CUB hotels in Victoria.
The Northies sale is being handled jointly by Knight Frank and Ray White Hotels.
‘‘Between us we have a strong inquiry list of interested publicans,’’ Mr Wheatley said.
Northies was redeveloped in 1998 to include tourist accommodation and multi-storey residential apartments.
The hotel refurbished its popular bar Old Joe’s at the northern end of the property last year.
Mr Wheatley described Northies as one of the great beachside hotels of Sydney.
‘‘The beauty of Northies is that it is a one-pub area. Coogee has two pubs and Bondi has three pubs but the whole of the shire comes down to Northies.’’
Business as usual for licensee Rob Stanley-Jones
IT WAS business as usual at Northies last weekend when news broke that the popular venue was for sale, with the hotel hosting a major fund-raiser for children’s cancer research.
Northies licensee Rob Stanley-Jones did not want to comment on the sale process yesterday, instead directing Leader inquiries to agency Knight Frank.
It is the first time in 17 years that the popular Cronulla hotel has been offered for sale.
Mr Stanley-Jones preferred to discuss Footy Colours Day, which coincided with last Friday’s launch of the Sports Bar’s inaugural ‘‘Festival of the Boot’’.
The night celebrated the start of Footy Finals Fever, which will see the hotel screen games over the next few weekends in the lead-up to the NRL and AFL grand finals, the rugby union and the start of the NFL season.
Northies staff and patrons will wear their favourite footy jersey and help raise funds and awareness for the Fight Cancer Foundation, supporting children and teens living with cancer.
Mr Stanley-Jones used the opportunity to accept an Ice Bucket Challenge nomination from his brother Paul and Northies regular Donnie Rogers.
About 50 litres of iced water was dumped on Mr Stanley-Jones and Northies staff member Sarah Davies. They raised close to $300 for the cause.
What do you think of the sale of Northies?
