Ainscow Hotel on the market for £8.5m after administrators called in
Boutique four-star Ainscow Hotel has been put on the market for £8.5m after its owners called in administrators.
The hotel, which was founded by late property developer Carol Ainscow, is set in the former Brown Brothers brewery on Trinity Way in the heart of Salford’s Chapel Street regeneration area.
Artisan, the developer and operator of the Ainscow Hotel, appointed joint administrators Jimmy Saunders and Andrew Knowles, both of Kroll Advisory to Artisan H1, The Ainscow Hotel , Greyday, and Artisan Group Facilities Management in September 2021.
They have now instructed Knight Frank as the sole selling agent for the sale of the hotel.
The property was originally the home of The Watson & Woodhead Brewery in 1878, before it became a Mackie & Sons Fruit Preserves jam factory in 1972.
The Artisan Property Group then purchased the property in 2003 and later converted the building into a hotel, which opened in 2014 following a major capital expenditure programme.
The building comprises 87 rooms including executive doubles and suites that are arranged over two floors and there are plans in place to create extra rooms including 99 apartments on the site.
Last year the third floor was reconfigured, converting several meeting rooms and food & beverage areas into “well-proportioned” guest accommodation, increasing the room count from 73 to 87.
The ground and lower ground floors of the property benefit from public areas whilst externally there is a barrier-controlled car park for 36 vehicles.
Matthew Smith, Partner in Knight Frank’s Hotels team, said the team expects to find a buyer soon given “the lack of hotels available for sale in the current market.”
He said: “The hotel benefits from several value-add opportunities to include the potential to create an additional 57 guest bedrooms and 99 residential apartments, subject to planning permission.
“The North West of England recorded over £300m of hotel transactions in 2021 and was ranked as the third most liquid region in the UK (excluding London) with Manchester accounted for 73% of this regional activity, highlighting the attractiveness of the region for hotel investment.”
