Doxford Hall hotel on market for £9m

Sep 17 2009 by Iain Laing, The Journal

THE millionaire businessman who wants to sell his luxury Northumberland hotel and give the profits to charity has put it on the market for £9m.

Brian Burnie has spent £16m over the last 14 years transforming the 191-year-old Doxford Hall into a lavish spa hotel and he is now trying to sell the newly-opened business, its nine-acre estate and three houses.

The 65-year-old built up a fortune heading Newcastle-based Kelburn Recruitment and plans to spend the proceeds of the sale buying and running 25 minibuses to carry cancer patients to hospital.

The hotel has just been put on the market by property agency Knight Frank and has quickly attracted attention from big hotel groups from around the world.

But Heaton-born Mr Burnie, who became a well-known Tyneside entrepreneur after starting work at 15 as a grocery delivery boy, hopes it may attract interest from another generous businessman.

“We have had a lot of interest already and I have just been taking the chairman and chief executive of a large hotel group around.

“But I would like to think it may also attract bids from businesses who appreciate what I am trying to do here,” he said yesterday.

“The market is difficult for the leisure sector but we have only been open a few months and built a really good business here already and the turnover is projected to be around £1.5m for the first year and it will grow after that.”