'The staff are really excellent' - Cavanman 'very happy' to complete Slieve Russell deal

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Halfway through the Anglo-Celt’s interview with Tony Brady, the Melbourne-based Redhills native who completed the purchase of the Slieve Russell hotel in Ballyconnell yesterday (Friday), a guest, just after checking out, interrupts apologetically.

“Sorry to interrupt, I just wanted to say best of luck, I don’t know you but I gathered what you have done. Congratulations,” she interjects in a southern accent.

Such comments have been common in recent days as the story of the successful Cavanman made good Down Under purchasing one of the prime hotel properties in the country has become public knowledge.

Brady himself, who takes, in his own words, a “hands-on” role in his businesses, is not one for courting publicity but was happy to explain the background of this latest expansion.

“I was in Ireland in July this year and I played golf at the Slieve Russell and I heard it was up for sale so I made enquires with the agent in Dublin, Paul Collins at CBRE, and we started the process. It’s a great property, I knew it for many years coming here playing golf, I stayed here occasionally,” he said.

“It all ran smoothly. The process took a few weeks and then we secured a deal last Friday (October 18).”

The location of the property and its obvious qualities were what attracted him, he said.

“It’s a beautiful property, it’s local. A great golf course and a great hotel. The local angle was part of the decision and the quality of the asset. You can see it in the gardens, it is immaculate. I stayed here in 2023 for a week and played golf here on and off since it opened. Or tried to play golf!

“The golf course has got PGA National status so there is potential to expand that, it is the only golf course in Ireland which has that PGA National status, a lot of people don’t know that. There is only one per country and only eight or nine of those in the world so the golf course is outstanding.”

The Slieve Russell has been purchased by Brady Hotels Ireland. Tony Brady emigrated to Australia in 1973, starting off as a bricklayer before moving into contracting; Brady Group’s core business is in developing apartments but the company also moved into the hotel space approximately a decade ago.

“It (the growth of Brady Group in Australia) was a gradual process, it didn’t snowball as such. I was lucky to have a lot of good people working for me,” he said.

“We’re not new to hotels, we have a lot of experience in running hotels at this stage.

“The challenge in the hotel game is you have to provide excellent service every day, all year round, and keep the guests happy. It is ongoing, the upkeep, maintaining standards of cleanliness and presentation and so on. The Slieve Russell has been very well run, it is marvellously kept and the staff are the best I have encountered.

“We’ve been running hotels for 10 years and we have five in Melbourne now, four Brady hotels and one IHG hotel under the badge of a new brand called voco.

“The Slieve Russell is a different type of property, it’s a hotel and country club and all our other hotels are city-based in Melbourne.

“There are a lot of great staff in the Slieve Russell, there are hundreds of local jobs, full-time and part-time, so it is an important part of the community.

Brady based himself in Cavan with a small team of staff from Australia in recent weeks and after the work (“checking compliance, liabilities, financial checking, the accounts, forward bookings and all that stuff”) was completed, the deal was signed on Friday last.

Brady is particularly happy to have acquired a business in his home county, to where he has been a frequent visitor.

“That was a very big part of the decision. It will be run by a local team here. Tony Walker is the General Manager and Orla Murphy is the HR Manager and both are doing an excellent job. The staff are really excellent, I’m not just saying that, we are very happy with that aspect.

“The same goes for Brendan Hegarty, Gordon Smyth and all the staff at the golf course.”

Brady confirmed that the Slieve Russell name will be retained. He has a number of family members involved in Brady Group in Australia and feels the company has stayed close to its roots. His brother Ollie, former Cavan footballer and All-Star, will be a director of the Irish company.

“My brothers Martin, Oliver and Raymond still live in Redhills and I come back when I can anyway,” he said, “I hope now to spend more time in Cavan going forward.”