A famous Victorian watering hole has changed hands, sold through auction for a six-figure sum. See the new owners.
2 min read
April 18, 2024 – 5:00AM The Weekly Times
An iconic East Gippsland pub has changed hands after it was sold under the hammer for a six-figure sum through auction last week.
The famed Blue Duck Inn at Anglers Rest, located about 30km north of Omeo, has been sold by Lana Antony and Michael Mullins, with a Melbourne-based venture capital group taking the reins.
Private investment firm Thundering Herd have acquired the 110-year-old venue, who have plans to syndicate ownership of the property via their fractional property investment platform, BrickX, a wholly owned subsidiary of Thundering Herd.
“The Blue Duck Inn is seen as an iconic regional and Victorian High Country establishment,” Thundering Herd founder and chief executive Joe Galvez said.
The historic Blue Duck Inn at Anglers Rest has been sold through auction.
“The chance to own a piece of history and continue making it available to the public who frequent the property as a by-product of living locally or the many other interests that visitors have such as motor car and motor bike drive days, fishing, cycling, kayaking, hiking and more across the wider Omeo area, makes for us, a great opportunity.”
Multiple efforts have been made in recent years to sell the property, with the latest campaign launched earlier this year, culminating in an auction held on April 11.
On the day, five registered bidders were in the running before Thundering Herd secured the historic property with a winning bid of $900,000.
Castran director and selling agent Lachlan Castran said a broad range of buyers were interested in the property.
“The Blue Duck Inn is an extremely unique asset, you couldn’t get the improvements there in today’s market,” he said.
“Every one of the potential buyers at the pointy end had been a customer of the Blue Duck at some point.”
The historic inn has been owned by Lana Antony and Michael Mullins for at least a decade, after the couple, originally from Melbourne, spotted an ad for it in The Weekly Times.
Lana Antony, former owner of the Blue Duck Inn at Anglers Rest.
Located at the junction of the Cobungra, Bundarra and Mitta Mitta rivers, the Blue Duck Inn is surrounded by 650,000 hectares of national park, making the watering hole a popular sport for fishers, bushwalkers, kayakers, four-wheel drivers, motorbike and cycling enthusiasts.
Constructed in 1900 the property was added to and partially relocated in the 1920s, initially starting out as a butcher shop servicing miners on their way to the Mt Wills goldfields.
The remote Blue Duck Inn is at the junction of the Cobungra, Bundarra and Mitta Mitta rivers, north of Omeo.
Now the venue has 18 bedrooms and 10 bathrooms via six self-contained cabins, a manager’s residence and a staff cabin, across a 1.2ha site. There is also a bar, 50-seat restaurant and commercial kitchen.
Sold with vacant possession, Mr Galvez said he was hoping to extend the availability and accommodation offerings at the Blue Duck Inn to the public. Discussions have also started with “various collaborators” as to how the bar and restaurant will run.
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