News
Details of Des Gunewardena’s Royal Exchange venue unveiled
19th April 2024Details of former D&D London CEO Des Gunewardena’s latest venture at The Royal Exchange in the City of London have been unveiled. The venue will comprise of two hospitality concepts, Engel and Jang, and will occupy 6,500 sq ft of space on the north, south, and east mezzanines of the scheme’s central courtyard, Restaurant Online reports. The project is Gunewardena’s first since his departure from D&D. Occupying the north and east mezzanines, Engel will be a 1920s Berlin-inspired cocktail bar. There will also be an adjoining performance space – Engel Live – which will host live cabaret performances and be available for private hire. Meanwhile, Korean and Japanese-inspired restaurant Jang will occupy the south mezzanine, and will be led by chef Dana Choi, who has worked most recently as executive chef at Seoul Bird. Des Gunawardena said: “We’re excited about Engel and Jang bringing something new and different to The Royal Exchange with their unique approach to design, dining, and entertainment. “Engel is very much a venue for today but inspired by the spirit of 1920s Berlin. Jang will offer a more intimate dining experience that, at its heart, celebrates Korean cuisine. We hope, through Jang, that Korean cuisine will become […]
Deals
Holiday business takes off at Manchester Arndale
19th April 2024Manchester Arndale has signed an agreement with Kuoni Travel which will see the premium holiday operator open at the shopping centre. The new location sees Kuoni relocated from its existing Manchester branch on King Street, and will enable customers to discuss travel plans with Kuoni’s team over a glass of champagne. The company sells a wide-range of holidays such as family holidays, safaris, honeymoons, cruises, and city breaks. The letting comes as Manchester Arndale’s asset managers, M&G Real Estate and Global Mutual, look to diversify the range of occupiers at the scheme. Over the last 12 months, a number of high profile lettings have seen the centre’s footfall increase by 6.3%, with over 46 million people visiting Manchester Arndale and New Cathedral Street during 2023, as occupancy reached over 95%. Scott Linard, portfolio director for M&G Real Estate, said: “It is great to welcome Kuoni to Manchester Arndale as we look to ensure we continue to offer a diverse range of retail, leisure, and eateries to help attract visitors from the North West and beyond. Our wide variety of brands and strong footfall is ensuring we continue to attract leading occupiers to Manchester Arndale, and we hope to announce further […]
Requirements
Aldi unveils wish list of priority London locations
21st March 2024Aldi has revealed its list of priority locations in London where it is looking to open new stores. The supermarket retailer recently announced its long-term plan to operate 1,500 stores across the UK, with a particular interest in locations within the M25 due to strong demand. As part of a £500m investment to increase its presence in London, Aldi is aiming to open a further 100 stores within the M25. Priority locations include: Aldi is offering a finder’s fee for property agents, who recommend a previously unknown site, of 1.5% of a freehold price or 10% of the first year’s rent for leasehold sites. The retailer is on the hunt for sites at least in size 20,000 sq ft for its standard stores, with around 100 dedicated parking spaces and preferably on a main road with good access and visibility. Aldi is also looking for smaller sites to accommodate its Aldi Local format, which are around 5,000 sq ft in size. Jonathan Neale, managing director of national real estate at Aldi UK, said: “We want to make high quality, affordable food accessible to all, but there are still many areas in the capital that don’t have access to an Aldi […]
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
Sosandar makes “substantial progress” towards first stores
19th April 2024Sosandar has made “substantial progress” towards opening its first stores, with the womenswear retailer having identified a number of “top tier” locations. The retailer said its primary focus is ensuring that Sosandar stores are situated in “affluent, thriving” locations where the brand over-indexes. Sosandar said the timings of the first openings will be determined by its ‘right price, right location’ approach. The company added that it is on track to execute its store roll-out as expected. In December, Sosandar said it had identified target locations for its first stores. This comes as the retailer releases a full year trading update for the financial year ending 31 March 2024, a period during which it recorded a revenue of £46.3m, a year-on-year increase of 9%. Sosandar said during the period that trading was broadly in line with expectations. The retailer – which operates mainly through its website – said it has been one of the top seeling brands with third-party operators, such as M&S and Next. Last year, Sosandar also reached an agreement to sell a curated collection of its products through Sainsbury’s supermarkets. Ali Hall and Julie Lavington, Sosandar co-CEOs, said: “We have delivered a robust financial performance for FY24, delivering […]