8/6/2023

National commercial property and investment company LCP, part of M Core, has taken ownership of the largest retail warehouse scheme in Grimsby.

It has acquired Alexandra Retail Park, Alexandra Road, for an undisclosed sum from an institutional vendor, as part of its proactive acquisition drive in shopping parades, centres and retail parks across the country.

The 125,695 sq ft retail park comprises eight units, with tenants Matalan, SCS, The Food Warehouse, My Energi Ltd, Argos, Pets at Home and Poundstretcher. There are also about 560 parking spaces for shoppers.

It is prominently situated, adjacent to a Sainsburys superstore and petrol station, with access directly off Corporation Road, which is one of the key routes through the centre of the town. It is also close to the A180, the main arterial route and dual carriageway through the town.

James Buchanan, LCP group managing director, said: "Our asset management team is working hard to identify sites that have potential for us to add value to, provide good value for money for tenants, a great shopping experience for local people and a good return on our investment.

"M Core has already invested more than £100 million in the first half of 2023 across the UK. We continue to believe this is a strong and positive market to be in and because we have healthy cash reserves, we can move swiftly when we want to complete a transaction. This approach has stood us in good stead for years, which is why we are renowned in the commercial property sector for our acquisition and intense asset management strategy."

Barry Flint, LCP director and asset manager at Alexandra Retail Park, added: "Alexandra Retail Park is well positioned in the town and has a strong tenant line-up. We'll be exploring options over the next few weeks to see how we can add to it further."

M Core, of which LCP is a part, has invested more than £160 million over 12 months in 25 retail centres. Major acquisitions include Cwmbran Centre, Cwmbran; The Galleries, Washington, Sunderland; and Three Spires in Lichfield.

It has £300 million available to invest for assets ranging from £500,000 to £30 million and portfolios up to £150 million, and is actively seeking sites for acquisition.

The solicitor acting on behalf of LCP was Catherine Gunz of Osborne Clarke and ESH acted as the agent for LCP. Savills acted as an agent for the vendor, and its solicitor was Gowling WLG (UK) LLP.

Appointed agents are Henry Phipps of Edgerley Simpson Howe and Duncan Wiley of PPH Commercial. For further information about available units, contact Barry Flint, LCP director: bflint@lcproperties.co.uk or 0782 513 8755.