Historic country pub up for sale
One of New Zealand’s most historic country hotels has been put up for sale by its owner of nearly 20 years.
The Taupiri Tavern’s restored, heritagelisted building is a landmark in the small rural town around 20km north of Hamilton.
The original hotel was built by William Lovell, who arrived from Ballarat, Australia, at the end of the Victorian gold rush in the late 1800s and bought large tracts of local land. The family are still prominent landowners, farmers and now residential developers in the area.
The original hotel was destroyed by fire, eventually giving rise to today’s larger, grander building built over a century ago.
Bob Gamble bought the pub in 2003 and has lovingly restored the building to its former glory. He is now retiring and putting the profitable establishment on the market at a time when Taupiri is seeing unprecedented residential growth.
The land, buildings and business at 2 The Crescent, Taupiri, are being marketed as a freehold going concern, by negotiation, through Luke ten Hove and Steve Pett of Bayleys Hamilton.
Ten Hove said assets for sale included buildings with a total floor area of 705sq m on more than 1250sq m of Commercialzoned freehold land with on-site parking. The main building has a Category 2 Heritage NZ Historic Place listing. It has been extensively refurbished in recent years, including
a new roof last year.
The tavern features a character bar and restaurant supported by a full commercial kitchen. A rear courtyard provides plenty of space for outdoor entertainment and private functions. The hotel offers nine rooms.
“The Taupiri Tavern is a classic New Zealand country hotel and one of the Waikato’s best loved watering holes.
“As a business, it has been an outstanding performer over the past few years and has continued to grow through the challenging times of Covid. The business benefits from its multiple revenue streams derived from a great range of food and beverage offerings, hotel accommodation, nine gaming machines, TAB and an ATM,” said ten Hove.
Detailed information on business performance and assets is available to potential buyers subject to signing a confidentiality agreement.
Pett said “the stars have aligned” for the tavern’s future prospects, with a number of local developments providing a new owner with opportunities to take the business to a new level. “The opening just weeks ago of the Hamilton section of the Waikato Expressway, literally one minute from the tavern, is a godsend delivering a step-change in connections with Hamilton and Cambridge.
“A new highway services complex has upped the game in terms of local amenities, with a BP service station and truck stop, along with McDonald’s, Subway and Taco Bell outlets and a Robert Harris cafe.
“Meanwhile, Taupiri is seeing massive residential growth, with new subdivisions and numerous housing developments,” said Pett.