5/3/2016 | Pub Mortgages

Award winning Staunton Arms helped by Christie Finance

Christie Finance, the specialist commercial finance broker, has recently helped business partners, Julian Benton & Nick Verrinder, to secure funding to acquire the freehold of the Staunton Arms in Staunton in the Vale, Nottinghamshire.

The 200 year old pub has been growing in popularity since being rejuvenated under Julian and Nick’s ownership and management. They took on a new lease with the business being having previously closed in 2010.  They undertook a complete refurbishment of the restaurant, hotel rooms and bar area prior to reopening. The Staunton Arms has been awarded with ‘Pub of the Year’ by the local CAMRA Branch as well as a ‘Certificate of Excellence’ from TripAdvisor.

Julian and Nick both have extensive experience in the sector, in operations and management of hospitality businesses. Purchasing the freehold will give them scope to explore new opportunities for this pub such as extending the premises.

Stuart Pawelczyk, Associate Director at Christie Finance, advised and supported the clients to find the right funding at a highly competitive rate. The deal did hit a stumbling block in the early stages, with the vendor taking their time in accepting the offer, but through persistence by both Stuart and the clients, once the offer was accepted Stuart moved quickly to secure the funding required from a High Street lender.

Commenting on the deal “It’s been a great opportunity to meet Julian & Nick and help them find the right funding support to continue their ambitions for the Staunton Arms. At Christie Finance, we are always keen to support leaseholders who want to make their business entirely their own.”

Julian added: "We're incredibly excited about the future of The Staunton Arms, and we're looking forward to making some solid plans for the business. We're grateful for the support from Christie Finance in helping us get to this stage."