British Land has announced wave of new lets, with Rock Up, Glow & Co and Fussy Nation agreeing terms at Whiteley Shopping Centre in Hampshire.
Rock Up, an indoor climbing adventure operator, has taken a 4,786 sq ft unit on a 10 year lease, with the outlet due to serve high quality food alongside its soft play and climbing wall facilities.
Gift retailer Glow & Co, meanwhile, will move into a 1,707 sq ft unit on a five year lease and will stock its extensive range of bath and body products along with its popular home fragrance lines.
Perhaps the most exciting new occupier is Fussy Nation, which has also elected to take up a 1,707 sq ft unit on a five year lease. The independent fashion retailer showcases the work of new designers and world famous brands including Ralph Lauren, Hugo Boss and Hackett- and the Whiteley outlet will be its first store opening outside London.
Head of shopping centre asset management for British Land, Claire Barber, says; “We are continuing to see strong demand from a broad range of occupiers and are particularly excited to introduce a UK first with the Rock Up concept.
“We are taking more new retail and leisure operators out of town and introducing innovative new concepts that will encourage people to visit more frequently and stay for longer.”
Yet it is not only new tenants that have caused a degree of excitement at Whiteley, as work on a new leisure extension has also begun recently.
Due to open in the summer of 2015, the £18 million project will bring a nine screen Cineworld cinema along with 30,000 sq ft of restaurant and leisure space and has already been 75 per cent let, with only two units still available.
In further good news, British Land has revealed that it has fully let its Grade A office complex at 39 Victoria Street in London. The nine storey commercial property was recently refurbished, and its location in the heart of Victoria has proved attractive for businesses seeking to expand in the area.
The letting of 39 Victoria Street means that British Land’s West End portfolio is also nearing the fully let stage. In total, the portfolio consists of 2.4 million sq ft of prime office space, and at present has a 96 per cent occupancy rate.
Head of offices and residential at British Land, Tim Roberts, says; “We have continued to see good letting momentum across our London office portfolio which reflects the high quality spaces and environments we have created along with improving occupational demand.
“With little new product coming to market over the coming years, we are pushing forward with our near term pipeline.”
