Great Portland Estates secured £7m worth of retail deals last year
Great Portland Estates (GPE) completed on 26 new retail leases in the last financial year, securing £7m worth of rent.
The property development and investment company said these lettings were 4.7% ahead of the March 2023 estimated rental value (ERV).
This included a new flagship store for Tk Maxx, which has agreed to take 22,500 sq ft at Mount Royal, Oxford Street. In addition, health and beauty retailer Superdrug re-geared the lease for its 8,000 sq ft store at the development, committing for another 10 years. GPE said it has a further 20,000 sq ft of prime retail space under offer at the western side of Mount Royal, with further deals expected later in the year.
During the year ending 31 March 2024, GPE completed on a total of 66 leases across all divisions including flexible property, generating a total of £22.5m worth of rent.
The total space covered by new lettings, reviews and renewals was 401,500 sq ft. GPE said a further £5.3m worth of rent was under offer, with market lettings 20.3% ahead of the March 2023 ERV.
During the current quarter, GPE has committed to two new developments, including a 143,100 sq ft Grade A office development at Minerva House, SE1, as well as the 67,600 sq ft office-led development at French Railways House, SW1.
Toby Courtauld, chief executive of GPE, said: “We are delighted to report another strong quarter’s leasing, bringing our total transactions for the year to £22.5 million, 9.1% ahead of ERV. Our fitted and fully-managed spaces have performed particularly well; our spaces are full and our ability to provide a market-leading, hassle-free experience for our customers is driving returns and reinforces our ambition to grow our flex activities to 1 million sq ft.
“Given the strength of occupational demand, and the increasing scarcity of high quality space to let, we have started two new developments this quarter. Our latest scheme, Minerva House, will take full advantage of its impressive river frontage, creating an enviable South Bank HQ destination with new public realm and gardens whilst delivering outstanding sustainability and re-use credentials.
“Looking forward, with interest rates and yields at around their peak, we are increasingly confident that our growing development and flex activities, combined with strengthening rental growth, will drive attractive returns in the near term. Furthermore, with the investment market moving in our favour, we expect to add to our growth prospects as the year progresses.”