A Guinness brewery that opened about two weeks ago in Chicago’s Fulton Market district is for sale in a deal expected to top $20 million.
Chicago developer Fred Latsko has hired JLL brokers to seek a buyer for the Guinness Open Gate Brewery, which opened in late September in a former railroad depot building at 901 W. Kinzie St., he confirmed to CoStar News.
Latsko and JLL are billing the deal as a one-of-a-kind opportunity to own one of the Irish brewer’s properties.
“It’s time to pass the torch, or in this case, the tap, to new stewardship, as the only other two Guinness Open Gate Breweries are owned by the brand itself,” Latsko said in a statement.
The Guinness operation itself won’t be affected by a property sale.
It’s not clear how much Latsko is expecting in a sale, but someone familiar with the deal estimated it would sell for more than $20 million. Guinness has a 10-year lease in a deal that generates more than $1 million in net operating income annually, according to the person familiar with the deal.
The Guinness building is opening at a challenging time to sell properties of all types because of rising interest rates and other worries.
But unique properties in fast-growing areas have demonstrated the ability to rise above broader challenges, as seen earlier this year with the $35.75 million sale of the Time Out Market food hall building in Fulton Market. The buyer of that property was Italy’s Garavoglia family, which owns a controlling interest in the Campari Group spirits company.
Fulton Market, which a recent CoStar analysis found was the fastest-growing urban office market in the country, also has expanded with residential and hotel towers in recent years. That has attracted real estate investors from throughout the country and the world.
Guinness parent company Diageo in September 2021 announced plans to open the 15,000-square-foot brewery along Morgan and Kinzie streets and train tracks on the northern edge of Fulton Market.
That followed Guinness’ opening of its first U.S. brewery about three years earlier, near Baltimore. The original St. James Gate Brewery in Dublin has been around since 1759.
The Chicago opening is part of a national trend of breweries seeking unique locations, such as within or near sports and entertainment venues, to stand out from a crowded field of breweries.
Guinness has a full-service kitchen, taproom, bakery and cafe in the new Chicago space.
For the Record
Latsko is represented in the sale by JLL brokers Keely Polczynski, Michael Nieder, Mohsin Mirza, John Dettlaff, Caity Tirakian and Alex Moss.