News
Wiltshire leisure park on sale for £13.6m
3rd May 2024A leisure park in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, has been placed on the market with a price tag of £13,550,000. St. Stephen’s Place Leisure Park comprises 83,926 sq ft of leisure space and is anchored by an 83-bed Premier Inn hotel and a seven-screen ODEON cinema. Other tenants at the 3.16-acre scheme include Nando’s, Wagamama, Prezzo, Loungers, and Frankie & Benny’s. The scheme – which provides a total topped-up rent of £1,428,153 – has a weighted average unexpired lease term of 12.61 years to expiry, and 10.12 years to break. The town of Trowbridge is located approximately 9 miles south east of Bath, 21 miles south east of Bristol, and 51 miles north west of Southampton. The town has a population of 428,000 individuals within a 10-minute drive, and a focused catchment of 59,000 residents. Bruce Gillingham Pollard, which has been appointed to market the property, said the £13.6m price tag reflects a net initial yield of 9.88%.
Deals
Loaf opens new ‘Shack’ in Chiswick amid expansion
2nd May 2024Loaf has opened a new ‘Shack’ concept store in Chiswick, West London, as the furniture retailer looks to expand. The smaller format store spans 3,770 sq ft and sits at the junction of Turnham Green and Chiswick High Road. The retailer has agreed a 10-year lease for the store, with the rent achieved ahead the quoting figure of £150,000 a year. GCW advised the landlord, whilst Curson Sowerby advised Loaf. Both firms have been retained to advise on the retailer’s ongoing expansion. Last year, it was reported that Loaf was looking to open Loaf ‘Shacks’ in a number of UK cities. Existing locations include Battersea, Notting Hill, Spitalfields, Guildford, Solihull, Wilmslow, Bristol, St Albans, and Edinburgh.
Requirements
Lidl to open hundreds of stores across the country
1st May 2024Lidl has announced plans to open hundreds of stores across the country, as the supermarket retailer celebrates 30 years of trading in the UK. Over the coming months, Lidl is set to welcome shoppers to new stores in cities such as Bristol, Birmingham, and Berwick, Scotland. In London alone, the retailer will be opening stores in Wandsworth, Fulham, Hoxton, and Canning Town. This follows a year of significant investment into Lidl’s infrastructure, during which the retailer opened its largest-ever warehouse in Luton. It has also completed an extension to its Welsh distribution centre in Bridgend, as well as made significant progress with its Belvedere warehouse expansion which, upon completion, will result in its size and capacity being doubled. The announcement comes as Lidl publishes its list of target locations for potential new stores, with the discounter eyeing major growth in cities such as Edinburgh, Leeds, Liverpool, and London, as well as smaller towns. Richard Taylor, Lidl GB chief development officer, said: “Having fortified our infrastructure with significant investments like Luton, which is the largest warehouse in the Lidl world, we’re proud to have achieved record market share this month. We have also been the fastest growing bricks and mortar supermarket for […]
Insights
Teesside Park: British Land’s “winning” retail park format in action
14th March 2024As the retail landscape has evolved over the past few years, retail parks have become an increasingly attractive investment, or as British Land boss Simon Carter previously put it: “the winning retail format”. But what drives their success? For Grace Waterworth, asset manager at British Land, retail parks offer customers and businesses the three ‘A’s – affordability, adaptability, and accessibility. Waterworth is part of the team behind Teesside Park in Stockton-on-Tees, an asset which she says is a “prime example” of offering these three ‘A’s: “The format is incredibly attractive to retailers due to lower occupational cost ratios than high streets or shopping centres, driven by lower rents, rates and service charges and strong store turnover”, she says. Once a traditional, ‘boxy’ retail park, Teesside Park in the Tees Valley – of which British Land owns around 585,000 sq ft – is the primary retail destination for the surrounding catchment, which includes the towns of Darlington, Hartlepool, Redcar, and Middlesbrough. Accessibility to these surrounding areas has played a key role in the scheme’s success, says Waterworth: “At Teesside Park there is excellent access from the A66 and A19 directly into a large, free car park. This makes Teesside Park ideal […]
Advice
Finding the right retail property for you
20th March 2024William Barton / Shutterstock.com Every business is unique, and for those who want to enter the world of physical retail, finding the right property is no different. If you’re a retailer ready to take your business to the high street, finding the right place to start can be daunting. It can be a real balancing act, but knowing what to look for before you begin your search can give you a head start. So here are the top things to consider when looking for the right retail property: Location, location, location It may be a cliché at this point, but the old adage rings true: location is one of the most important things to consider when choosing the right retail property. The first thing to consider is your target audience. You’ll want to find somewhere that attracts a demographic that matches your customer base. For example, if your business is looking to appeal to an audience of young adults, an area with a high student population such as in a university district would be an ideal spot. It’s also important to consider your local competition. Depending on the type of business you run, nearby competition either be beneficial to you […]
News
Mango targets over 20 new UK stores this year
3rd May 2024Mango has revealed plans to open over 20 new stores in the UK in 2024, with growth mainly focused on Scotland and London. The Spanish fashion retailer is also set to make its debut in selected cities across Northern Ireland, central, and southern England. Mango will open four stores in London, and expand its presence in Scotland with new openings in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Daniel López, Mango’s director of expansion and franchising, said: “The UK is one of the priority markets for Mango’s international growth. “The increased presence in London and our arrival this year in some cities where we have not been present until now will consolidate the Mango brand and help us to strengthen it internationally.” Last year, the retailer opened over 10 stores in cities such as London, Manchester, Leeds, and Bristol.