Susanna Freymark
The 1928 Exchange Hotel in Kyogle has been sold – again.
Like many country pubs, the Exchange was bought by a company that moved the 11 poker machines out and sold the pub again.
This same process happened at Bonalbo and Tabulam with different companies.
Fortunately for Kyogle residents, publicans Carly and Steve Morphett will continue to run the pub through the ownership changes.
Carly and Steve have been running the pub for three years.
The Exchange Hotel, known as the Bottom Pub, had been owned by the Gilliland family since 1978.
Four years ago, it was sold to the Roche Group that owns pubs across NSW. Roche owned the pub for 12 months and then sold it to the Watering Hole Hotels Group.
“The pokies have gone to Tamworth,” Steve said. That was 18 months ago.
This hasn’t been bad news for the Exchange.
“We’re doing better now than with pokies,” Steve said.
The poker machines had been an issue because they were visible from the street and a fake wall had to be put up to block that.
For Carly and Steve, the pokies don’t matter – their focus is on families.
The Watering Hole Hotels group put the Exchange back on the market once the pokies were gone and Travis Robertson, a WA man living in Bangalow bought the pub.
Steve said they’re keen to maximise motorbike tourism and continue to target families at the landmark pub on the corner of Kyogle’s main street.
Carly pulls a beer.
“I wouldn’t do this if I didn’t love it,” she said.