Entrepreneurs Amelia (23) and Lucy Gain (22) are the new owners of the Spire, on Church Lane. They are 50-50 shareholders in their new company, Le Due Sorelle, ( in Italian, The Two Sisters).
Lucy Gain is a graduate of the Queenstown Resort College's Diploma of Hospitality Management course and is managing director. Amelia Gain will take care of accounts and IT as director.
Amelia, who studied philosophy and politics, will become managing director once she has completed her current IT studies at the Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology, in about 18 months.
Originally from Christchurch, their family has lived in Queenstown for more than five years. The pair have worked and studied in the resort and overseas in the hospitality industry ever since.
The sisters acquired the business from previous owners Ian Inglis, of Whangaparoa, north of Auckland, and Dick van der Sande, of Singapore, and are in it for the long term, they said.
"It's already a great place and a great brand, but we want to put on our own personal stamp," Amelia said.
"Getting the bar and restaurant open for starters. We want to ensure people have an amazing time when they stay."
When asked what people's reaction was to the significant responsibilities taken on at their age, Lucy said there had been "a lot of positive feedback".
"Everyone's very excited. Some people will be surprised by our ages, but I've worked in the luxury sector over the past couple of years, working on luxury yachts in Europe. We know how to look after guests. We'll give them a really personal experience and stay; and we appreciate what they are looking for."
Amelia said it had been a joint venture all the way through.
"We've always set our sights on working for ourselves, but this opportunity popped up for us a wee while ago. We took our time to consider if it was going to work for us. It wasn't a rush decision."
Lucy said they were going to bring their own personalities to the business - "personable and inviting".
"At the moment, we're going to keep it all the same and make sure our guests enjoy their stay, but we're coming up with new ideas all the time."
They said this week had been busy and they were planning a reopening party in the new year.
