The Charles Sturt Hotel have new owners who are excited to take on the challenge of keeping Narrandera’s last remaining pub alive.
The new owners are a family owned company by the name of Sorella Group which is made up of three sisters and their partners.
Although they were not looking for another hotel to add under their belt they found themselves tempted by the charm of Narrandera and its community.
“We weren’t looking for another hotel but its just the location and the fact that its Narrandera that made us want to,” said co-owner Stacy Challacombe.
“For us it was more about getting involved with the community and having a presence there.”
The group also own the popular Wade Hotel in Leeton and attribute its success to great food, great staff and most of all to listening to what the local community wants.
For many Australians especially those in regional areas, pubs are an important feature – from providing a space for local clubs to meet or simply allowing locals somewhere to relax after a long day, they serve many purposes for a community.
Narrandera has seen a slow decline of pubs in town, many of which had seen a number of owners before eventually shutting their doors.
The Sorella group hope to keep the Charles Sturt Hotel running for the community as well as keep the love of pub culture alive in the town.
“I think if we are open to hearing what people want and evolving with the community, I’m comfortable and confident we can make it work” Ms Challacombe said.
“We’re kind of just a custodian – we just make it what people want it to be. We want to bring the local back to the pub”.
The group are not looking to make any drastic changes to the hotel but are definitely excited to revamp the hotel in order to make the experience even better for those who visit.
They have been busy since taking over the reins of the hotel and are keen to mingle with the Narrandera community so that they can start establishing themselves as a business the locals can rely on.
This article appeared in the Narrandera Argus, 23 February 2023.
