Retail Property News

Golf simulator signing sees St Martin’s Place fully let

22nd June 2023

St Martin’s Place in Birmingham is now fully let following the signing of golfing simulator experience Inner City Golf on a ten-year lease. Customers can tee off for the first time when the experience opens in September. The deal means that St Martin’s Place, which is located just off of Broad Street, is now at full occupancy with all five retail units now let within months of the development’s completion. The experience, at Unit 4, allows customers to hone their skills at virtual versions of the World’s most prestigious courses, such as St Andrews, Pebble Beach, Royal Troon, Wentworth, and Albany in the Bahamas. St Martin’s place is described by developers Seven Capital as Birmingham’s most exclusive residential development and is home to 228 apartments with hotel-style services including a concierge, gym, cinema, WiFi lounge, and outdoor terrace. Siddall Jones, which recently acquired the retail agency arm of property consultancy Centrick, is responsible for all five lettings at the development. Ed Siddall-Jones, managing director, said: “Broad Street appears to be in transition with a number of notable residential developments being completed and under construction. “The area is starting to reaffirm its position, once again, as a destination area for the […]

Green light for £500m Hertfordshire mixed-use development

22nd June 2023

A £500m mixed-use development in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire has been granted planning permission by the Borough of Broxbourne Council. Named Brookfield Riverside, the development looks to create a new town centre for the borough and is expected to consist of up to 315,000 sq ft of retail space, 250,000 sq ft of leisure and F&B space, public realm improvements, 160,000 sq ft of offices, around 250 homes and 100 assisted living units, and a 2,000-space car park. The site was highlighted in the Broxbourne Local Plan 2018-2033, which was approved by an independent planning inspector in 2020. New walking and cycling routes across the development have also been outlined, as well as bus services to connect it to the surrounding area. The development also has a biodiversity increase target of 10%, with over 15,000 trees expected to be planted across the site. Councillor Lewis Cocking, leader of Borough of Broxbourne Council, said: “The developments will create much-needed housing and affordable homes, a variety of leisure and retail facilities, including a new cinema and up to 2,500 permanent new jobs. This will not only be good for the local economy, but will also have environmental benefits; the new town centre will be...

Joules faces bill of over £100m following Next rescue

22nd June 2023

Joules still reportedly owes over £100m to suppliers, lenders, and customers following its rescue by Next. The retailer’s administrators’ progress report has revealed that unsecured creditors are still owed some £112m, according to The Times. Clothing and fabric suppliers are reportedly owed a further £38.6m while associated property companies have been left short-changed by £3.8m. Customers who hold gift cards are also out-of-pocket by £1.3m, while the remaining debt is owed to other companies and creditors. The report revealed that those affected will receive just a fraction of what they are owed. In late 2022, Next announced that it had struck a £34m deal to rescue the retailer out of administration, after it failed to secure emergency investment. It is estimated that around 100 stores and 1,450 jobs were saved.

Private equity firm eyes £500m Reiss purchase

22nd June 2023

Private equity firm Elliott Advisors, known for their corporate activism, has emerged as a leading name looking to purchase ‘affordable luxury’ fashion brand chain Reiss. Elliott Advisors, which owns books retailers Waterstones and Foyle’s, is reportedly looking to purchase the brand from current shareholders Next and Warburg Pincus, Sky News has reported. One of the firm’s senior executives, Paul Best, played a large role in Warburg Pincus’ acquisition of its stake in the retailer in May 2016. It is believed that at least three parties have expressed their interest in making a bid for Reiss, which may go to auction in a process overseen by bankers from Raymond James. Elliott Advisors already has an understanding of the UK retail sector through its ownership of specialist lender Bantry Bay, which has worked with Superdry and ASOS. It remains a possibility that Next and Warburg Pincus may choose not to sell Reiss, which could fetch a valuation of £500m. Next purchased a 25% stake in Reiss in 2021, before exercising an option to take majority shareholding of the chain last summer, bringing its total stake to 51%.

Matalan makes double leadership appointment

22nd June 2023

Matalan has made two senior leadership appointments as part of its ongoing transformation programme. Phil Hackney has been appointed as chief supply chain operator and Katherine Davis has been made the fashion and homeware retailer’s chief retail officer. Taking up his position on July 3, Hackney will be tasked with providing “executional excellence” across Matalan’s logistics and supply chain. He has previously worked as chief operating officer at The Very Group and has also held roles at Pets at Home and Boots. Davis will join the retailer on July 10 and will look to execute Matalan’s retail strategy. Prior to this role, she was global retail director at Paperchase, and has held positions at Pets at Home, Asda, and Mark & Spencer, where she spent 18 years. Both new appointments will report directly to Matalan CEO Jo Whitfield, who said: “I am thrilled to welcome Phil and Katherine as two great new additions to the senior executive team as we continue to move at pace through our transformation. We will be able to benefit from their deep industry experience as they support Matalan’s executional excellence in their respective focus areas.” The two new roles have been created following the stepping […]

Nationwide commits to keeping branches open until 2026

22nd June 2023

Nationwide has said it will not leave any town or city it is based in until at least 2026, as part of a renewal to its ‘Branch Promise’. The building society said that many people still want to be able to bank face-to-face at high street locations, as well as digitally and on mobile. It added that it had invested over £46m into keeping its branches open during the past three years. Many banks have opted to close their doors as consumer patterns shift, including HSBC, which announced plans to close 114 banks late last year, while some are looking to alternatives such as TSB’s pop-up pods. Nationwide said that almost half of openings of its recently launched ‘Fairer Share Bond’ were arranged face-to-face and 36% of its current accounts opened so far this year have been done so in-person. It added that branches are also popular for customers needing advice and support. According to the building society’s research, the majority (63%) of 2,000 surveyed consumers said they valued their local branch. SaveTheHighStreet.org has endorsed Nationwide’s decision, and called on other high street retailers to do the same. Its co-founder, Alex Schlagman, said the move came “at a good time”....

French Connection to open first outlet store in six years

22nd June 2023

French Connection is set to open its first outlet store in London at The O2‘s Icon Outlet. The fashion retailer will be opening in a 1,766 sq ft unit later this month, located adjacent to Clarins and Ted Baker on the scheme’s upper level. The outlet store will stock a range of clothing and accessories for both men and women, and will look to reflect the brand’s aesthetic through the use of a clean and minimalist design. French Connection’s store at The O2 will mark the brand’s first outlet opening in six years, and will join other retailers at the centre including Adidas, Clarins, Nike, as well as the recently upsized Tommy Hilfiger, which doubled the size of its previous unit. Louisa Dalgleish, leasing director at The O2, said: “We are continuing to drive momentum and craft a compelling proposition through new tenants and store upsizes, and French Connection will offer consumers a staple UK brand which is known and loved by so many. We are pleased to welcome them as part of an increasingly strong retail offering at The O2, demonstrating yet again a notable vote of confidence in outlet locations.” The news follows the announcement that skincare-led brand […]

Rise in interest rates expected following stubborn inflation figures

21st June 2023

The Bank of England is expected to again raise interest rates after it was revealed that inflation remained unchanged between April and May. Figures from the Office for National Statistics revealed that prices rose by 8.7% in the 12 months to May 2023, unchanged from April. On a monthly basis, consumer price inflation increased by 0.7% in May. Rises in the price of air travel, recreational and cultural goods and services, and second-hand cars were the largest contributors to the increase in inflation. Food and non-alcoholic beverage inflation was still very high in May, at 18.3%, although this figure was down from 19% in April. The price inflation of all goods was down from 10% in April to 9.7% in May, however the figure for the price of services rose from 6% to 6.3%. The Bank of England was expected to raise interest rates by a quarter of a percent to 4.75%, although it is now being suggested that this number may reach 5%. During Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, the leader of the Labour Party Sir Keir Starmer blamed the “mortgage catastrophe” on the Government, while his opponent Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pointed to wider macroeconomic factors as the […]

WHSmith amongst major retailers who failed to pay minimum wage

21st June 2023

WHSmith, Marks & Spencer, and Argos are amongst over 200 companies which have been named and shamed by the Department for Business and Trade for not paying their employees the minimum wage. A total of 202 named employers were found to have failed to pay a cumulative £5m in wages, leaving some 63,000 workers short-changed. WHSmith was the biggest offender, owing arrears of over £1m. In second place was Lloyds Pharmacy, which owed some £903,307 to employees. The were followed by Marks & Spencer and Argos, which owed £578,391 and £480,094 respectively. The list of 202 employers also includes smaller companies and small traders. All businesses in the list have since paid back what they owed to staff and have faced financial penalties. Of the employers named, it was found that: Minister for enterprise, markets and small business Kevin Hollinrake said: “Paying the legal minimum wage is non-negotiable and all businesses, whatever their size, should know better than to short-change hard-working staff. “Most businesses do the right thing and look after their employees, but we’re sending a clear message to the minority who ignore the law: pay your staff properly or you’ll face the consequences.” The release of the list […]

Soho’s Bar Italia café to go under the hammer

21st June 2023

The site of a much loved London institution is up for sale. The historic Bar Italia site in Soho is set to head to auction with a guide price in excess of £2m. The café at 22 Frith Street has been trading as the Bar Italia since 1949 and will head under the hammer on July 6th along with 123 other lots. Bar Italia, famous for its delicious coffee, is located close to Old Compton Street and is walking distance from tube stations including Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square, and Covent Garden. The Soho café sits opposite Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club and adjacent to Little Italy restaurant. The current tenant benefits from licenses which grant the playing of late night music, the sale of alcohol, and trading until 5am.

Gunwharf Quays transformation headlines Landsec retail investments

21st June 2023

A £45m transformational development at Portsmouth’s Gunwharf Quays is one of three major investments Landsec is set to announce at its Capital Markets Day. Landsec said the Portsmouth development will enhance the look and feel of the centre to create a more memorable experience for shoppers, attract more guests, and deliver more value for brand partners. The Gunwharf Quays investment is expected to increase turnover at the site by over a third during the next five years. Landsec is also set to outline further developments at St David’s in Cardiff and Trinity Leeds. The Cardiff development will see the removal of 160,000 sq ft of retail space left vacant by Debenhams, as well as the creation of a new city square and introduction of a further 30,000 sq ft of new food and beverage and leisure space. In Leeds, Landsec will be investing in Trinity Kitchen, which looks to repurpose under-utilised retail space and create a 70,000 sq ft multifunctional hospitality destination. Bruce Findlay, managing director of retail at Landsec, said: “We’re focusing our strategic investment on where we can drive growth and deliver attractive returns. Our prime, catchment-dominant retail destinations have recovered strongly since COVID and, through targeted investment, […]

Former Gateshead House of Fraser let to NHS

21st June 2023

A former department store in Gateshead is set to be transformed into an NHS Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC), representing the repurposing of 40,000 sq ft of retail space. The ex-House of Fraser site at Metrocentre has been let to the NHS Foundation Trusts for Newcastle and Gateshead, with the new CDC set to provide imaging as well as respiratory and cardiac investigations. The centre will be built to create capacity for those medical services which are seeing increasing amounts of referrals. It is hoped the centre will provide improved access to screening and diagnostic services for local people outside of a hospital environment. Metrocentre asset manager Sovereign Centros said the plans will create extra capacity while speeding up diagnoses for patients, to enable better patient care and outcomes. Ben Cox of Sovereign Centros said: “The letting represents a major milestone in the evolution of the Centre. Metrocentre is renowned as a leading retail and leisure destination, but in the future it will also be a key regional location for alternative uses including healthcare.” He added: “This initiative is particularly significant due to the repurposing of the former House of Fraser department store space. Delivering alternative uses to Metrocentre is a...