An award-winning fine dining restaurant and bar in the village of Haughton, near Stafford, has been brought to market with a guide price of £1.5 million. Proprietors Stuart and Janet Blackley have instructed Blacks Business Brokers, the national business transfer specialist, to find a buyer for the Shropshire Inn, which they have owned since 2010.
The Shropshire Inn has been regularly recognised for the quality of its food, and dining experience since Mr and Mrs Blackley took over and converted it from a traditional pub into a fine dining restaurant and bar. It has been awarded AA Rosettes for Culinary Excellence for four consecutive years and was a finalist in the Taste of Staffordshire Awards for five years running from 2011 to 2016.
The restaurant has, in particular, been recognised for sourcing a large proportion of its ingredients locally. Its meat is sourced from Andrew Woolley Meats in Cannock, vegetables come via Perry’s of Middlewich and dairy products come from Wells Farm in Bradley.
The business, which employs 18 staff, including five chefs, turned over £460,000 in its most recent financial year. Mr and Mrs Blackley, who are both in their 60s, are now looking to capitalise on their success and sell the freehold on the business in order to retire.
The Shropshire Inn consists of a large, detached, roadside property housing a restaurant with seating for 90, a lounge bar and a large catering kitchen that has recently been refurbished with high-end Blue Seal and Lincat appliances. The bulding also includes four-bedroom owners’ accommodation.
Externally the property has a beer garden, a car park with 45 spaces and a ¾-acre field operated by the owners as a touring caravan site. The beer garden is able to be covered by a marquee to accommodate weddings and private functions.
Joanne Booth, director at Blacks Business Brokers, said, “This is a fantastic opportunity to buy a well-established fine dining restaurant with a great team in-situ and an excellent reputation. Its idyllic rural location belies the fact that it’s actually only a short drive from the centre of Stafford, and within easy reach of a very large catchment.
“There is a real opportunity here to build on the foundations laid by Mr and Mrs Blackley, particularly by expanding the Shropshire’s foothold in the weddings market. It is already a fabulous business, though – if you really want to put this to the test then I suggest you try arriving for Sunday lunch without a booking!”
All enquiries should be made to Blacks Business Brokers on 0333 370 0000, quoting reference 6014.