The Olde Ship is brimming with maritime memorabilia that celebrates Seahouses’ rich fishing heritage and is located above the village’s bustling harbour, 500 yards from Seahouses North Beach.
The property was initially part of a farm and first licensed in 1812, with the Glen family at the helm as proud custodians of the inn since 1910. Over the years, the family has invested significantly into maintaining the pub and 12 guest rooms, and also creating a newly developed beer garden to maximise the sea views over the harbour and out to the nearby Farne Islands.
Multiple offers
Having built the inn into a highly regarded and profitable business, they felt the time had come to step back from the day-to-day operations, create a new lease and seek an enthusiastic leasehold operator to take the reins.
David Cash, director in estate agent Christie & Co’s hospitality team, which handled the sale, said: “Given the quality of the business and the sought-after location, we were able to run an incredibly discreet and succinct marketing process that involved utilising our extensive network to approach only trusted and proceedable parties. This resulted in multiple, credible and acceptable offers being submitted within two weeks of going to market and our clients were able to carefully select whom they wanted to sell their business and grant a new lease to.”
Previous operator and now licensee of the pub Alan Glen added: “It is with a heavy heart that we hand over the keys to the Olde Ship but the timing is absolutely right for us. The Ship has been in our family since 1910, with our daughter Judith and her husband David involved in running the business for the past 20 years. Needless to say, the decision to sell the business and lease out the premises was not one we took lightly. However, we’re looking forward to moving on to the next chapter in our lives, knowing the property is in the hands of very capable and trustworthy tenants.”
100% commitment
Ollie Bennett and Matt Daniel of new leaseholders the Inn Hospitality Group said: “Businesses like the Olde Ship very rarely come to market so when David approached us we jumped at the chance. We are absolutely thrilled to have been successful in what was a very competitive bidding process. Alan, David and Judith have put their trust in us as tenants to look after their property and we’re 100% committed to doing so.
“The Ship sits perfectly within the Inn Hospitality Group portfolio, taking us from one to four venues in our first 18 months of operation. The venue fits with our ethos of growing an estate of quality pubs with rooms in strong tourist locations, making it a fantastic venue to have on board as we aim to launch our group brand later this year.
“Seahouses has forever been phenomenally busy with tourists and with the pandemic reminding people of the beauty of the English coast and countryside, we predict the demand is going to continue for years to come. Underpinning the tourist trade is a strong, loyal, local following and the Olde Ship is still very much a ‘proper pub’, an element of the business we feel strongly about preserving and nurturing.”