Fears for future of Dartmouth Arms, Forest Hill after Swansea retailer buys lease
Residents expressed alarm when they heard that the Victorian pub had been bought at auction by a Welsh firm which runs a single NISA shop.
Swansea solicitors Peter Lynn and Partners published a post on 2 September celebrating the success of two of its clients in their first venture into the London property market.
This firm said they had managed a "complex deal" to buy the freehold and existing leases for the Dartmouth Arms pub, on behalf of two clients, Balwinder Kaur and Gurpinder Singh.
Kaur and Singh are directors of a company named NISA Dunvant in Swansea.
The post was quickly removed, but not before details had been saved by Forest Hill residents and discussions began circulating on whether a NISA store was on the cards. Peter Lynn and Partners did not respond to a request for comment.
The Dartmouth Arms is a listed Victorian pub, 50 metres from Forest Hill station.
It is one of a parade of grand buildings along Dartmouth Road, built as the fortunes of the area rose with the arrival of the railway in 1839.
Despite its prime location, it has struggled in recent years. It was taken over by burger chain MeatLiquor 'Not Just Meat and Liquor' in 2021, but then shut down as part of a MeatLiquor restructuring in March 2026.
Fergus Navaratnam-Blair, councillor for Forest Hill, told Salamander: "The Dartmouth Arms is an important piece of our local history and a centrepiece of the Forest Hill conservation area, and many residents were sad to see the pub close earlier this year.
"We hope that the new owners are able to work constructively with the council and the local community to ensure that this site continues to function as a true community asset."
How did NISA Dunvant raise the funds?
NISA itself is not a company but a branding, group franchising and supply operation, which since 2018 has been a wholly owned subsidiary of the Co-op. Around 1100 stores carry the NISA brand, and nearly 4000 more use its supply services.
The registered address for NISA Dunvant is an office building at 163a St Helens Road, Swansea.
The office is the registered address for accountancy firm VB accounting solutions and at least 13 other companies, including NISA Dunvant, and two other firms run by Gurpinder Singh - MB Film Production and MB Music Productions.
VB accounting solutions produces accounts for Singh's three companies.
The three firms have stated that they meet the requirements of low turnover, balance sheet and employee numbers which means they are exempt from audit.
NISA Dunvant runs a single NISA-linked convenience store, actually a One Stop in Dunvant, an area on the outskirts of Swansea.
The NISA Dunvant accounts show that the firm is very small (11 employees) and had just £183k in net assets as at 30 June 2025.
This raises questions about how the firm raised the money for the purchase, why they are venturing into the London property market and what their intentions are for the Dartmouth Arms.
The Savills guide price for the pub at auction was £1,450,000.
While Singh's firm MB Music Productions is currently dormant, MB Film Production is active. Its stated nature of business is Performing Arts and Artistic Creation.
By 30 Jan 2026, MB Film Production had net debts of just under £1,449,492, close to the guide price for the Dartmouth Arms.
Companies House records that Atom Bank made a loan to NISA Dunvant on 14 November 2025, which was registered on 28 November.
It is currently unclear whether the finances between Singh's two companies are related, and what activities each are involved in. The loan and the purchase of the Dartmouth Arms will figure in next year's accounts for NISA Dunvant.
But the unanswered financial questions do nothing to reassure local residents and questions about Kaur and Singh's intentions for the pub.
Robert McIntosh, Chair of the Forest Hill Society said: "We only became aware of the purchase a few days ago. Already many of our members and local people have expressed great concern that this historic pub might be lost to our community.
"We are asking the new owners to come forward and share their plans with the community as soon as possible."
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