Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Aberdeen’s Atholl Hotel back up for sale at £3.2 million

Agent says reduced price better reflects the current market.

The Atholl Hotel in Aberdeen
The Atholl Hotel in Aberdeen. Image: Cornerstone Business Agents

The Atholl Hotel on King’s Gate, Aberdeen, is being remarketed by new agents at a discounted price of £3.2 million.

Cornerstone Business Agents, whose offer goes live today, said it had been repriced to “sell in an improving market”.

Barry McNeil, director, Cornerstone, is now handling the property sale on behalf of co-owners Gordon Sinclair and Richard Nicoll.

Mr McNeil said: “We have placed the hotel on the market at a realistic price that is very reflective of the current market.

“Our pricing at £3.2m takes into mind our clients desire to retire and focus on other projects.

Hotel market ‘shaping very well’

“We think the hotel market in 2024 is shaping very well. We are likely to see a drop in interest rates in Q1 and, thankfully, energy costs have peaked.”

He added: “2024 seems a better environment to sell a hotel and we are confident the Atholl Hotel will find a buyer who values the staff and customers as much as our clients.”

Inside the Atholl.
Inside the Atholl. Image: Cornerstone Business Agents
The Atholl Hotel.
The Atholl Hotel is for sale at £3.2m. Image: Cornerstone Business Agents

The hotel is an Aberdeen dining institution, a popular hotspot for social and business gatherings in the city.

It went on the market last June, through another agent, at offers over £3.5m.

Mr Sinclair, the managing parter, planned to retire from the hospitality industry after nearly 50 years. Mr Nicoll said he wanted to focus on other business interests. These included The Dutch Mill Hotel, in Aberdeen, and The Broadstraik Inn, in Westhill.

Richard Nicoll and Gordon Sinclair at the Atholl Hotel.
l-r Richard Nicoll and Gordon Sinclair at the Atholl Hotel. Image: Tricker PR

Mr Nicoll and his father, Gordon, owned a lion’s share of the Atholl until a couple of years ago, with Mr Sinclair holding a smaller stake. Gordon Nicoll died in November 2021, aged 66, after battling cancer.

Mr Sinclair has been a hands-on partner since 1996 but his links to the hotel go back further. He started his hospitality career there as a trainee, from 1974 to 1978, while it was under the ownership of renowned Aberdeen hotelier Stewart Spence and his wife, Sheila.

The Atholl is an Aberdeen dining institution.
The Atholl is an Aberdeen dining institution. Image: Cornerstone Business Agents Date; Unknown
One of the hotel's bedrooms.
One of the hotel’s bedrooms. Image: Cornerstone Business Agents

The four-star hotel has 34 en suite rooms for up to 62 guests.

It also boasts two function rooms, a restaurant, bar and lounge area which together can seat nearly 200 guests, along with a car park for up to 64 vehicles.

The two-storey, B-listed property was built as a private home in 1892 and has traded as a hotel since 1946. A 20-bedroom extension was completed in the early 1980s.

The business netted turnover of more than £2m in the year to November 2022.

Inside the Atholl.
Inside the Atholl. Image: Cornerstone Business Agents Date; Unknown
Aerial view of the Atholl Hotel.
Aerial view of the Atholl Hotel. Image: Cornerstone Business Agents

In its sales particulars for the hotel, Cornerstone says: “Our clients feel enhanced marketing with help push the room sales further, and equally enhance the food and beverage offering.

“New owners will want to explore the ability to increase room stock through further development at the rear of the property.

“This is certainly an area where short-term capital investment could be repaid, with increased profitability from more room sales enhancing the medium to long-term investment.”

The bricks and mortar are located in one of the most sought after addresses in Aberdeen.”

Cornerstone adds: “An additional block of rooms could be placed on top of the existing accommodation block at the rear. Also, the size of the car park permits utilising
some of the space for potential rear building expansion.

“The availability of the Atholl Hotel represents a very solid and attractive investment
return for hospitality operators.

‘Steady and impressive profit’

“The business produces a steady and impressive profit. Equally, the bricks and mortar are located in one of the most sought after addresses in Aberdeen offering solidity in terms of an underlying value.”

Any development would be subject to local authority planning consents.

Prospective buyers can find out more about the sale at www.cornerstoneba.co.uk or by calling the firm on 01772 376556.

Conversation