11th Jan 2005 12:00
Land Securities Group Plc11 January 2005 11 January 2005 LAND SECURITIES GROUP PLC ("Land Securities") The Scottish Retail Property Limited Partnership assembles Scotland's largestshopping centre The Scottish Retail Property Limited Partnership (SRPLP/ the "Partnership"), thejoint venture between The British Land Company PLC and Land Securities GroupPLC, has concluded the purchase of Princes Square and Southgate in East KilbrideShopping Centre for over £60 million, creating one of the largest shoppingcentres in the UK and the largest in Scotland. Princes Square was purchased from Prudential at a net price of £37.25 million,showing an equivalent yield of around 6%. Built in 1997, the centre comprises 34units, totalling 8,154 sq m (87,769 sq ft) with New Look and Sport Soccer asanchors. Also prime Zone A space on one level, Southgate extends to 4,259 sq m (45,843 sqft) with 14 units, including a popular Carlton Club bingo hall. ThePartnership's bid of £24.50 million for the space, formerly owned by ScottishMutual Assurance plc, was accepted over two other offers, and will bring a netinitial yield of 5.18%. In total, the new assets acquired by the Partnership currently produce a grossincome of approximately £3.7 million per annum from almost 50 retail and leisureoutlets. On behalf of The Partnership, John Wilson comments: "First and foremost, theseacquisitions show long-term commitment to developing our already successfulretail pitch in East Kilbride. With the town facing increased competition fromneighbouring retail developments, this gives us the opportunity to create newstandards in the retail offer to benefit both retailers and consumers. We arenow better placed to create synergy between the malls, adding to a moreenjoyable shopping environment. "In particular, we aim to meet the changing needs of retailers. Over recentmonths, demand has been increasing for larger space - usually 3,000 to 5,000 sqft - and both Princes Square and Southgate present a variety of opportunitiesfor reconfiguration to improve unit sizes. This is likely to generate moreinterest from high street retail giants and attract new flagship retailers keento secure their first outlet in Scotland - as was the case with Esprit." Merrick Marshall of The Partnership added: "It made good strategic sense toacquire the retail assets in East Kilbride adjoining existing Partnershipholdings. Through one ownership, we can take this once-in-a-generationopportunity to unlock the real, sustainable potential of East Kilbride as thedominant retail centre for south Glasgow. It will also provide benefits of scalefor the management of the centre, as well as an opportunity to improvecirculation and secure more unified control of the malls. "There is no doubt that a co-ordinated asset management and tenant mix strategywill strengthen the entire town and make it more attractive to a widercatchment." The Partnership owns the remainder of the 1.2 million sq ft East KilbrideShopping Centre: comprising Centre West; Plaza Centre; Princes Mall; andOlympia. Moreover, the joint venture is working closely with StrathclydePassenger Transport on the £4 million regeneration of the bus station, thecompletion of which is scheduled for early 2005. Donaldsons acted for SRPLP, Prudential Property Investment Managers Ltdrepresented Prudential, and Abbey National Asset Managers and Montagu Evansrepresented Scottish Mutual Assurance plc. - ends - For further information, please contact: Melissa WinsorLand Securities Group PLCTel: (020) 7413 9000 John Weston SmithThe British Land Company PLCTel: (020) 7486 4466 Dido LaurimoreFinancial DynamicsTel: (020) 7831 3113 NOTES TO EDITORS: • East Kilbride Shopping Centre East Kilbride Shopping Centre is Scotland's largest covered mall at 1.2m sq ft(109,296 sq m), with a catchment of approximately 400,000 people. There are over250 retail, leisure and catering operators in total, with key occupiersincluding Debenhams, Boots, Next, French Connection and Game Station. It is theonly shopping centre outside a city centre with a full-line Debenhams departmentstore, and was home to the first Zara in the West of Scotland. There is also astrong leisure offering with an ice rink and nine screen UCI cinema. • Scottish Retail Property Limited Partnership Launched in March 2004, the Scottish Retail Property Limited Partnership is a 50/50 joint venture between Land Securities Group PLC and The British Land CompanyPLC, bringing together approximately 130,000 sq m (1.4 million sq ft) ofcombined Scottish-based retail property assets worth £500 million. • The British Land Company PLC In addition to those assets in the Partnership, British Land's £460m Scottishportfolio comprises five retail parks, two offices and 11 prime high streetshops. The retail parks totalling over 600,000 sq ft are Meadowbank, Edinburgh,Auldhouse Retail Park, Glasgow, Cuckoo Bridge Retail Park, Dumfries, St. James,Dumbarton and Springfield Retail Park, Elgin, with two offices also in Edinburghand Glasgow. The vast majority of the prime shops are held within the Citycentre of Glasgow, with other holdings in Edinburgh and Aberdeen. • Land Securities Group PLC Land Securities is the largest property company north of the border with aportfolio valued at £750 million. It includes four retail parks and eightshopping centres, comprising: the Princes and Olympia Malls, Centre West andPlaza Centre in East Kilbride; the Bon Accord Centre and St Nicholas Centre inAberdeen; the Almondvale Centre and extensive retail warehousing developments inLivingston, including joint ownership of the McArthurglen Designer Outlet;Kingsway West retail park in Dundee; and also joint ownership of BuchananGalleries in Glasgow. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
Land SecuritiesBritish Land