News
Dalton Park adds French Connection to fashion lineup
20th October 2026Dalton Park outlet shopping centre in County Durham has welcomed the addition of French Connection to its fashion lineup. The 1,569 sq ft outlet store offers the brand’s fashion collections for both men and women. French Connection’s arrival at Dalton Park follows a strong period for the fashion category at the destination, with womenswear like-for-like sales up by 17.6% in the year-to-date. The opening builds on recent investment in Dalton Park’s fashion offer, following the arrivals of Belstaff, Hobbs, Phase Eight, and Whistles earlier this summer. Nicky Lovell, head of designer outlets and brand relationships at Global Mutual, said: “Womenswear is performing particularly well at Dalton Park, so there is a clear opportunity to add more depth and variety to the category. French Connection has a distinctive design identity and broad appeal, which we believe will resonate well with our customer base. “The 17.6% growth we’ve seen in womenswear is a useful indicator of where customer demand lies and helps inform our approach to leasing. It’s about using those insights to identify opportunities within the mix and bringing in brands that respond to how our customers are shopping.”
Deals
Covent Garden to welcome flurry of F&B brands
19th October 2026Shaftesbury Capital’s is set to welcome a flurry of new food and beverage brands to its Covent Garden estate in London, accounting for just under 10,000 sq ft of space. Heading up the new entrants is contemporary Chinese restaurant Noodle & Beer, which will open its second restaurant in London’s West End at 25 Catherine Street. Occupying 1,625 sq ft, the operator’s new space offers authentic Sichuan-style noodles alongside a curated beer selection and a wine list. It also features a private dining room. In addition, Italian artisanal sandwich brand bread&truffle is set to open its West End flagship store in an 810 sq ft space at 7 New Row. These new signings will join several operators that have opened recently across the neighbourhood, including Bubala, which opened this week at 14 Garrick Street, and Experimental Cocktail Club, which launched its Halloween-themed exclusive pop-up bar ‘The Haunting’ at 9 Russell Street, which will transition into its ‘Miracle Bar’ concept when the festive season begins, running until the end of the year. Lenny’s Apizza is also set to open its a permanent venue in a 2,140 sq ft space spanning two floors at 23-24 Henrietta Street in October, closely followed by […]
Requirements
Costa Coffee brews up further expansion
8th September 2026Costa Coffee has unveiled its latest property requirements as it looks to continue its expansion across England, Scotland, and Wales. The coffee shop chain, working with its long-standing partner Savills, is looking to open new locations in retail parks and shopping centres, as well as on high streets and within travel locations. Costa Coffee is also looking to open drive-through units in out-of-town retail locations. Ideal units will range in size between 1,250 sq ft and 2,200 sq ft and be located adjacent to foodstores, retail warehousing, and leisure space. Within retail parks, Costa is seeking units ranging between 1,500 sq ft and 2,500 sq ft in size with external seating. Freestanding or in-line units will be considered, with nearby car parking a necessity. Ideal units will be situated in out-of-town locations with significant traffic flow, adjacent to foodstores, and retail and leisure clusters. In high street and shopping centre destinations, Costa is looking for units between 1,500 sq ft and 2,500 sq ft with outside seating. Locations such as universities, hospitals, and leisure destinations will also be considered. The operator is also looking to open new sites within travel locations such as transport hubs and train stations with significant […]
Insights
Retail parks to outperform UK real estate sector, CTI report says
16th October 2026Retail parks are forecast to outperform the wider UK real estate sector, according to a new report from Columbia Threadneedle Investments (CTI) and Capital Economics. The Case for UK Retail Parks predicts that retail parks will generate total returns of approximately 8.3% per annum between 2026 and 2030, placing the sector amongst the strongest-performing areas of UK real estate. The research suggests that retail parks offer a compelling combination of attractive yields, improving occupier fundamentals, and structurally constrained supply. The imbalance in demand and supply is subsequently fuelling positive rental growth, supporting capital value growth alongside income returns. According to the paper, retail parks sit at the intersection of three forces shaping UK real estate: consumers’ increasing focus on value; demand for convenience-led retailing; and a structurally constrained development pipeline. Together, these factors are expected to support rental growth and attractive income-led returns over the medium-term. However, the research suggests that the investment case for UK retail parks extends beyond traditional retail, identifying five key trends supporting the sector’s potential to generate long-term income and growth, including: consumer trends favouring retail parks; the increasing diversification of retailers taking space; the difficulty of replicating retail park offerings online; the strengthening of […]
Advice
Turn lease events from growing pains into commercial gains
10th March 2026By Simon Matley, director for dilapidations and occupier services at TFT After a period of acquisition, a large commercial retail portfolio can become either a major liability or a powerful cost saver for retailers who need every advantage they can get in a challenging consumer market. For national multiples and high street brands, often with sizeable portfolios numbering in the hundreds of units, or for smaller regional operations that are growing at speed, flexibility and control are hugely important. Brands today are adapting their portfolios in light of changing consumer behaviour and omni-channel retailing, and this is shaped by the increasingly sophisticated data capture that allows them to better understand stock, fulfilment, customer behaviour, and operations. For many who have been acquiring premises over the past 10 years, they will almost certainly find that data allows them to be more efficient in the space they need, not least because of the growth of last mile logistics and on demand deliveries which enables occupiers to be nimble in how they use their spaces. Whether they operate on the high street, in retail parks or rely on distribution centres, retailers want to scale fast, explore new territory and snap up the right […]
News
Harry Ramsden’s opens second ‘Harry’s Hut’ format at Frasers Plus Designer Outlet Swindon
20th October 2026Harry Ramsden’s Group is has opened its second ‘Harry’s Hut’ location at Frasers Plus Designer Outlet Swindon. Harry’s Hut is the brand’s smaller-footprint format, with the name a nod to the brand’s origins: Harry Ramsden began serving fish and chips from a ten-foot wooden hut in Guiseley, West Yorkshire, in 1928. The new store offers the group’s signature menu, which includes hand-battered fish and chips prepared in beef dripping. It becomes the second Harry’s Hut location after Tower Bridge, which opened in August 2026. Frasers Plus Designer Outlet Swindon is located in the restored Great Western Railway works and home to over 90 designer and high-street brands, alongside a line-up of cafés and restaurants. James Fleming, chief executive officer at Harry Ramsden’s Group, said: “Harry’s Hut gives us a way to take Harry Ramsden’s into high-footfall destinations in a compact, flexible format, without compromising on the quality and craft the brand is known for. Frasers Plus Designer Outlet Swindon is the kind of high-footfall destination where the format can really work, and a strong partner to open with. Almost a century on from the original hut in Guiseley, this opening reinforces our ability to adapt and stay relevant.” Nicky Lovell, […]
