Chris Anderson, a Kiwi who’s been based in Australia for 30 years and built about 2000 homes there, explains he’s interested in the industry and three of his sons are also in hospitality up to management level.
"We thought this was a good entry point.
"I’ve committed six months myself. I’ll be here washing the dishes and cleaning the toilets and learning all about it."
Anderson says he’ll initially only make subtle changes like bringing a bit more warmth into the venue, however he’s also brought in a pizza oven and a fibreglass accordion-playing polar bear.
From August he also plans to open for evening dining.
He says he’s got about $100million worth of projects on the go locally including a 1550 square metre super-home he’s building in The Peak, on Queenstown Hill, where he also has a second site.
He’s also building two big condos on nearby Belfast Tce.
Last year he also bought a 25.6-hectare rural pad bordered by Malaghans and Littles Rds.
"We’re just looking at perhaps putting a motocross track in there, but it’ll ultimately be a lodge development that’ll accommodate four or five families at once."
Meanwhile, Sam and Ryan Lelievre, who’ve owned and operated The Exchange for the past 10 years, remain on the hospo scene with The Farmhouse cafe at Hanley’s Farm, which they opened last November.
