Wellness retreat up for grabs as Gwinganna founder slows down
Health entrepreneur Tony de Leede, who brought the Fitness First gym chain to Australia 25 years ago, hopes to tap into rising interest in the wellness sector by putting a $20 million Gold Coast retreat on the market.
The 72-year-old is finally looking to slow down after building his name in wellness retreats as they emerged over the past two decades, including his creation of the popular Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat.
Up for grabs is the EcoView Retreat, nestled in the Tallebudgera Valley in the Gold Coast hinterland, which opened just six months ago after a three-year development.
“We have corporations who come up, and they want to do their strategic meetings for three days, and then they want to combine it with some lifestyle experiences,” de Leede said.
“We have a full wellness centre where you can do different activities. We also have the infrared saunas and three different hot tubs at different temperatures.”
Set across 28 hectares, EcoView Retreat is a private centre with 15 self-contained villas, five multi-purposes spaces, and a separate four-bedroom caretaker’s home.
De Leede bought the Trees Road property for $1.975 million in 2005, and its private residence has since been used by some Gwinganna employees.
The entire EcoView Retreat can be booked for three, four and seven nights and sleeps up to 30 guests. Only 25 minutes from Gold Coast Airport, the centre has been used as a destination for corporate trips, wellness and lifestyle retreats and weddings.
De Leede is also open to buyer interest for his famed Gwinganna retreat, although it is not officially on the market. The health-focused resort was at the forefront of the wellness industry when it opened in 2006 and has been recognised in this year’s Spa+Wellness Awards, winning three gongs.
He also introduced Fitness First to Australia, first established in Britain, with its first gyms opening in 2000.
Wellness tourism was rapidly emerging and EcoView Retreat catered for many uses, de Leede said, who is also selling the business with the property.
The retreat has been operating for six months, already hosting about eight functions and with another 15 to 20 booked for next year.
De Leede said the property could also be turned into a rehabilitation or longevity centre.
“Both properties are there for the right person to take over and continue what we’ve created and keep emboldening it into those areas like longevity,” he said. “The uses are endless.”
De Leede, who owns several other businesses, wants to slow down and had always planned to sell EcoView Retreat once it was built.
Queensland Sotheby’s International Realty’s Lana Faulkner, who is managing the campaign with Kurt McMahon, said the property was ideal for hosting events.
“It’s very hard to find somewhere that can cater for having people stay and have the yoga room, the meditation area, the gym area, the hot and cold therapy pools, having all of that available in the one space,” she said.
De Leede is also a part-owner of the beachfront resort Hotel Komune in Bali, which similarly has a strong wellness focus with its health club and retreat offerings.
