Waterfront hotel opportunities in Nelson quickly snapped up

May, 2021 – One of New Zealand’s finest boutique hotels in the sunshine capital of the country has sold after being on the market for less than a month.

The elegant and modern English-style hotel (formerly Grand Mercure) at 6 Point Road in Monaco, Nelson, defied all notions of an uncertain market to receive widespread interest from competitive buyers.

JLL Brokers Nick Thompson and Harry Fergusson were exclusively appointed to market the property for sale.

Following the successful transaction, the purchaser, Murali Kodoor from Arden Group then enlisted Thompson and Fergusson to help acquire further assets to immediately expand the Nelson portfolio. The adjacent accomodation and restaurant (Honest Lawyer) at 1 Point Road was the logical target as the freehold land and buildings had been on the market some years ago but had not sold. After a short negotiation, Arden Group purchased the property off-market.

Thompson says these transactions indicate the positive direction of the market for hotels in New Zealand.

“We ran a comprehensive nationwide campaign for the Grand Mercure Monaco hotel but still we were impressed by the sheer amount of interest we received,” says Thompson.

“After less than three weeks we had more than 40 qualified leads, with Arden Group winning the bid to sign an unconditional deal. During the campaign Arden Group expressed their interest in further expansion, and when we presented the prospect of 1 Point Road they didn’t hesitate.

“This unwavering demand means sellers of hotel and hospitality assets in New Zealand are receiving returns akin to before the pandemic.”

Arden Group has positive plans for the two properties.

“We own and operate a significant number of hotels and motels in the North Island but we wanted to establish our presence in the South Island and this sale with JLL provided the perfect opportunity,” says Kodoor.

“We are already investing in Grand Arden Monaco to make it a 4.5 star boutique hotel. This upgrade has created jobs in the community and the local companies will continue to be involved with our investment.”

Fergusson says the industry is now well placed for future growth.

“Following a period of uncertainty, we’ve seen a surge of interest in hotels and hospitality in New Zealand,” says Fergusson.

“Optimism around the deployment of vaccines, the bubble with Australia, and an eventual recovery in tourism has started to drive activity and investors don’t want to miss the opportunity.

“The cycle has been reset and we are now on well into our journey of recovery.”

Patrick Sanders, who together with his family originally owned the hotel at 6 Point Road, says they were initially hesitant about when to go to market.

“Once we had chosen JLL’s Nick and Harry to sell our property, they immediately explained the current climate of a limited market and the growing appeal of Nelson combined with an increasingly positive New Zealand brand to educate us on why we needed to seize the opportunity and get it on to the market as soon as possible,” says Sanders.

“JLL's performance was outstanding. The communication, confidence, accuracy, and sheer effort that Nick and Harry brought to the table blew us away and we are delighted with the result.”