PLANS are ramping up to find a national buyer for popular Nichols Point wedding venue Willow and Ivie, as the local selling agent sees it being expanded into a concert venue or live site for major sporting events.
The $5 million price tag for Willow and Ivie includes the freehold land and business, which has successfully catered for weddings, receptions, funerals, conventions and school graduations over the past decade.
The business has been on the market for about a year, but selling agent Ben Ridley, of Collie & Tierney First National, says a combination of the flat property market last year and an underestimation of the scale of Willow and Ivie business meant it struggled to sell.
But now, Mr Ridley and the business owners are taking it up a notch as they search for a national buyer.
“It’s going to be really interesting to see what type of people it attracts once we go truly national. We’re close to engaging a national business broker to help sell it,” Mr Ridley said.
“I can see a bigger operator coming here to take it to another level.”
He said the outdoor area could be further developed to cater for an “afternoon or evening on the green”, featuring live music and food vendors.
Mr Ridley can also see the introduction of a big screen opening up the potential to be a live site for AFL grand-final day, or other big-time sport.
“There is so much scope to further develop the site,” he said.
“Our main bait will be the business, because it is such a strong and well-regarded business, and then have the freehold as the carrot beside it.
“Interest had dropped off a bit because of the flatter market last year, but I also don’t think people understood the scale of the business.
“A lot of the enquiries were people looking to be first-time hospitality owners, the mum-and-day type buyers. But I think once they saw how big the business is, it was a bit daunting for them.”
Set on six acres, the venue comprises two main function spaces, “Willow” (hosting up to 300 guests) and the smaller “Ivie”, and an onsite chapel (seating 220 people) next to an ornamental lake and well-maintained grounds.
