Harbour Exchange, London

Getting ahead of occupier trends in Central London

Though occupiers were starting to shift their office space search away from central London to fringe locations, we knew they still needed to find high-quality accommodation with strong transport links.

After identifying three self-contained, multi-let office buildings just south of Canary Wharf and next to South Quay DLR station, we took on this well-specified, 190k sq ft accommodation for £37m alongside a co-investment partner.

As rents were rising in the City of London, we undertook a series of asset management initiatives. These included upgrading all vacant offices, improving reception areas and external entrances, and overhauling the Mechanical & Electrical (M&E). Overseas investors bought Harbour Exchange via two transactions in 2016 and 2018 – demonstrating a growing appetite for prime office space in desirable locations beyond the City of London.

St Vincent Street

Kingsway

West Regent St

Warwick House

St. Albans

Slough

Livingston

High Wycombe

Mercury Portfolio

Demonstrating active asset management of a mixed-use portfolio

Identifying opportunities for growth – as well as meeting strong demand for office and industrial space – encapsulates the successful rollout of asset management initiatives for our mixed-use Mercury portfolio.

The Mercury portfolio initially comprised 24 assets, nine of which were sub-sold on the day of acquisition for a notional profit of £10.8m. The portfolio was well-balanced, and included office, industrial, retail warehousing and high street retail units located mainly in London and the South East. And because of its size, we were pleased to structure it as a joint venture with a partner, who had complementary aspirations for the portfolio.

Following a complex acquisition, at the core of Mercury’s success was the potential to add real value through active asset management and creative solutions, while bringing significant returns for our investors. We also knew it was essential to tailor capex and undertake a significant refurbishment programme for some units. As a result of this foresight, 250k sq ft  vacancy was let, and assets were successfully sold as projects were completed.