Exclusive: Sydney’s iconic Stonewall Hotel has been acquired by little-known, American-based Pride Holdings Group, which says the purchase marks its first major expansion into the Asia-Pacific region – and the beginning of a broader push to lead the rollout of the Stonewall brand across Australia and Asia.
In a July 9 press release that went seemingly unnoticed by all media outlets, Pride Holdings described its acquisition of the long-running Oxford Street venue as a “significant strategic milestone” in its global expansion strategy targeting LGBTQ+ hospitality and entertainment. Gay Sydney News discovered the announcement by chance while researching another story.
“When wanting to expand to Australia and Asia, we looked no further than acquiring the number one LGBTQ entertainment complex in Australia,” said Pride Holdings Group chief executive Michael Barrett in the July 9 media release. “That being, Stonewall Hotel on Oxford Street in Sydney.
“With this acquisition completed, we now intend to roll out the Stonewall brand across Australia and Asia.
“We are negotiating a rollout of the brand in this region. We will be advising the market of 4–5 new acquisitions over the coming weeks. Australia and Asia — Pride Holdings is coming!”
Although Pride Holdings issued a press release on its website announcing the acquisition, neither it nor Stonewall Sydney’s management responded to questions from Gay Sydney News about it.
No response from Stonewall or Pride Holdings
Both parties were contacted via email on Sunday. Multiple calls to Stonewall rang out on Sunday and Monday, and a text message to a member of Stonewall’s management team also went unanswered.
Multiple other efforts were made by Gay Sydney News to contact Stonewall management – via LinkedIn to its owners, as well as through Stonewall staff members, one of which directed inquiries to management.
Curiously, Stonewall Hotel has not publicly acknowledged the sale on any of its social media platforms.
Pride Holdings did not disclose the financial terms of the deal in its media release, and it remains unclear whether Stonewall was acquired with cash, shares or a combination of both.
Ownership still listed as Australian
According to company records filed with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), Stonewall Hotel Pty Ltd, the corporate entity behind Stonewall Hotel, remained privately owned by a group of Australian and New Zealand individuals and families on Monday afternoon – at least on paper
However, updates to directorships, shareholdings and office addresses can sometimes be lodged late. Under Australian law, share transfers must be reported to ASIC within 28 days, though late lodgement is permitted with a penalty fee. As of Monday, 26 days had passed since the July 9 announcement.
Who owns Stonewall Hotel Pty Ltd
According to the ASIC documents, the largest largest stake in Stonewall Hotel Pty Ltd is held by Fohson Investments Pty Ltd, whose shareholders include Eunice, Richard and Elizabeth Foo.
Little is publicly known about the Foo family. ASIC records for Fohson Investments list Eunice as residing in Northbridge on Sydney’s lower north shore, Richard in Queenscliff near Manly, and Elizabeth in Hamilton, New Zealand. On his Facebook, Richard, lists himself as a ski instructor at Thredbo Ski School.
Additional shares in Stonewall are jointly owned by Craig and Wendy Bell of Mona Vale on Sydney’s northern beaches, while Graham Magree, of Cronulla in Sydney’s south, holds the remaining portion.
In addition to holding shares, Richard Foo, 57, and Craig Bell, 62, are Stonewall’s directors. Gay Sydney News attempted to contact both Bell and Foo via LinkedIn on Sunday but did not receive a response.
Stonewall co-owners take roles at Pride Holdings
In another previously unreported development, it can be revealed Craig Bell was appointed to the board of Pride Holdings, which was announced in an undated July press release. Pride Holdings said Bell brought more than 35 years of experience in security risk management, hospitality operations and corporate governance.
Richard Foo, the Stonewall co‑owner, is also listed on Pride Holdings’ website as its director of Asia Pacific. It’s unclear when he was appointed.
On its website, Foo is described by Pride Holdings as a seasoned business leader with more than 35 years of experience in finance, hospitality, and investment management. It said he holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Finance) from the University of NSW and is also a director at Fohson Investments.
Regarding Craig Bell, Pride Holdings said his career began with NSW Police and has since evolved to include ownership and management of several high-profile hospitality and security businesses. In addition to having co-owned Stonewall Sydney, Bell serves as director and owner of Corporate Protection Services.
Bell’s LinkedIn lists his past role at NSW Police as a criminal investigator constable.
The company also highlighted Bell’s credentials as a licensed hotelier and certified risk management professional with longstanding ties to both the LGBTQ+ community and regulatory agencies.
Other Australian links to Pride Holdings
Apart from Richard Foo and Craig Bell being linked to Pride Holdings, the US company has another significant Australian connection: its chief operating officer Timothy Majors is originally from Australia.
According to Pride Holdings’ website, Majors holds law and business degrees from the University of Sydney. It said he began as a corporate lawyer, led a national consolidation of Australia’s educational bookselling industry, and achieved a successful exit to a Macquarie Bank‑backed private equity firm.
Now based in the US, he is leading Pride Holdings’ global expansion.
Stonewall’s place in Sydney’s queer nightlife
The three‑level Stonewall Hotel – featuring four bars, drag shows and late‑night dancefloors – remains a cornerstone of Sydney’s queer nightlife and a focal point during events such as Mardi Gras.
However, in July last year it ceased trading Mondays and Tuesdays amid a downturn in Oxford Street patronage. Apart from the Mardi Gras season, it has yet to regularly reopen on those days.
Meanwhile, the building housing Stonewall’s ground-level Diva Bar, which sits on a separate lease to its main premises, was listed for sale in November. Stonewall’s lease of Diva Bar expires on November 3 this year, but its publicly available leasehold shows it has the option to extend it until June 30, 2029.
Officially established on July 25, 1997, Stonewall is one of Oxford Street’s longest-running gay venues, with a 27-year history. Gay club Arq Sydney, which recently changed management and rebranded as Aura in June and is hosting its first gay event in August, opened on August 13, 1999. Most LGBTQIA+ community members no longer consider Arq a gay venue since the rebrand.
While the name might suggest otherwise, Sydney’s Stonewall Hotel has no affiliation with the Stonewall Inn in New York, the historic site of the 1969 riots that sparked the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement.
Stonewall Sydney’s sale is a rare international acquisition of an Australian gay bar by a US company listed on the OTC Markets — an over‑the‑counter trading platform for public companies not on major stock exchanges and subject to minimal regulation.
The history of Pride Holdings
As of Monday, Pride Holdings had a market capitalisation of $US121.2 million ($A187.1m), meaning the total value of all its outstanding shares combined was estimated at that amount – a common metric used to gauge a company’s overall size and market value. Its shares last traded at 14 US cents each.
The company, which appears to operate primarily in Florida, where its CEO is based, has been rapidly acquiring LGBTQIA+ venues across the US, among them Aqua Nightclub and Bar, Birdcage Cabaret, Back Bar and 22&Co, all part of the AquaPlex Key West entertainment complex.
The Key West complex is located at the southernmost point of Florida, about 155 kilometres north of Cuba, on an island city that forms part of the Florida Keys archipelago. Pride Holdings also owns the AquaPlex Fort Lauderdale (formerly Lipps), situated just north of Miami.
On the same date as it announced the Stonewall Sydney acquisition, Pride Holdings also said that it had acquired a historic castle in northern Italy named Castello di Camino, which it has designated as its European headquarters, and bought two gay bars in Tampa and Fort Lauderdale named Johnsons.
Who is behind Pride Holdings Group
Pride Holdings chief executive Michael Barrett, whose appointment as its CEO was announced in a media release last month, also on July 9, was the owner of the aforementioned Key West and Fort Lauderdale venues, which the company also announced it had acquired on the same date as his appointment.
Pride Holdings is ultimately controlled by Florida-based businessman and chartered accountant Martin Donald Granatstein, also known as Don Granatstein, who co-owns the controlling entity MarGran with his wife Susan Unger, according to publicly available Pride Holdings financial documents. They will this month celebrate their 39th wedding anniversary.
Through MarGran, they own 39.12 per cent of the company’s common stock and all of its Series A preferred shares, which grant majority voting power.
An additional 39.12 per cent of common stock is held by Guilldford Investments LLC, controlled by chief operating officer Timothy Majors, the man originally from Australia.
Pride Holdings’ website says Donald is a seasoned executive with extensive experience in accounting, hospitality, and real estate. “He has led high-profile ventures including the [Orlando, Florida, gay resort] Parliament House Resort, Debbie Reynolds Resort, and Grand Lake Resort,” it says.
“Throughout his 50-year career, he has raised substantial capital, managed large teams, and overseen numerous successful timeshare and commercial real estate projects across North America.”
Financial pressure on Pride Holdings
As of June 30 this year, Pride Holdings, currently going through a corporate name change from Parliament House Enterprises, reported an accumulated deficit of $US14.96 million (A$23.13 million). Its quarterly financial report warned these conditions “may indicate that the Company will be unable to continue as a going concern for a reasonable period of time”.
In plain terms, this indicates the company faces a risk of running out of money or becoming insolvent if its financial position does not improve. To date it has been relying on debt to sustain operations.
“The Company has experienced net losses from operations since inception but expects these conditions to improve in future years as its new business model is implemented,” the report stated.
It also noted: “The Company has stockholders’ deficits at June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024 and requires additional financing to fund future growth and support operations.
“The Company’s existence is dependent upon management’s ability to develop profitable operations and to obtain additional funding sources. There can be no assurance that the Company’s financing efforts will result in profitable operations or the resolution of the Company’s liquidity problems.”
The same report showed the company had just $US31,578 (A$48,832) cash in the bank at the end of June – down from $US244,793 ($A377,672) at the end of March. In December it reported having $US367,094 ($566,415) in cash.
Another filing from late March revealed the company had taken on more than $US861,169 (A$1.33 million) in new debt over the past year.
Share restructure after sale announcement
Back in Sydney, company documents lodged with ASIC show a share restructure within Stonewall Hotel Pty Ltd took place on July 17, just over a week after the Pride Holdings acquisition announcement.
Although no new directors or external shareholders were appointed at that time, the internal redistribution of shares – including the transfer of 154 shares from two Bell-controlled companies (Planmate Pty Ltd and CGB Australia Pty Ltd) into the personal names of Craig and Wendy Bell – suggests a consolidation of ownership.
Planmate was jointly owned by Craig and Wendy, while CGB Australia was wholly owned by Craig Bell.
This restructuring replaced their non‑beneficial corporate holdings with direct personal ownership, possibly in preparation for Stonewall’s acquisition.
Ben Grubb is the founder and editor of Gay Sydney News, an independent publication covering LGBTQIA+ news. A journalist with more than 15 years' experience, he has reported and edited for The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, WAToday, Brisbane Times, The Australian Financial Review, News.com.au, ZDNet, TelecomTimes and iTnews, primarily on the topic of technology. He previously hosted The Informer, a queer current affairs program on Melbourne’s JOY 94.9 radio station, and contributes to LGBTQIA+ media including Stun Magazine. Ben has also appeared as a technology commentator on Channel Ten's The Project, ABC RN’s Download This Show and commercial radio stations 2UE, 2GB and 6PR. Contact Ben: ben.grubb@gaysydneynews.com.au
