Fund manager EG and Australian Venue Co. (AVC) have bought a pub in the Melbourne suburb of Maribyrnong on behalf of its private wealth division for $23.33 million. 

The Anglers Tavern pub, which is located at 2 Raleigh Road, sits on an 8,200 sqm site with river frontage and the potential to add value through capital improvements.  

The property will be leased to AVC on an initial 15-year lease term.

The deal follows the purchase of the Redcliffe Tavern, located at 32 Anzac Avenue at the Brisbane suburb of Redcliffe for $19.29 million last December.  

The site is leased to and operates as the Redcliffe Tavern and a First Choice Liquor superstore. 

Sean Fleming, Head of Capital Transactions at EG, said property assets in the hospitality sector presented a strong platform for growth and consolidation.  

“Great hospitality venues remain relevant to local communities, especially with lead operators building their reputation,” Fleming said.  

“Assets with long-term leases and strong underlying land fundamentals represent value that our community of wholesale investors will benefit from both today and in the years ahead,” said EG’s Head of Private Wealth, Rodney Walt. 

Anglers Tavern was secured off-market while the Redcliffe property was acquired off market through Jon Tyson of Savills. 

The transaction follows MA Financial Group’s acquisition of the Hotel Brunswick in Brunswick Heads near Byron Bay on the NSW North Coast for $68 million last month. 

Other hospitality property deals include Hotel Property Investments’ purchase of a portfolio of seven pubs located throughout South Australia for $66.1 million last month, while hotel operator Fraser Short bought the Sir George Hotel in the New South Wales town of Jugiong for a reported $14 million last November.