Computer and software innovative giant Apple is about to open a research and development base in the university city of Cambridge. Internationally recognised as Britain's innovation capital, Apple's arrival would be seen as a prestige capture for Cambridge which already has several high-profile technology companies either in residence or... Read More
In recent months, a number of lobby groups have called for local governments to have more control over business rates income in their own constituencies, with communities secretary Eric Pickles even agreeing that councils should be able to keep around 80 to 90 per cent of the tax to make improvements in their own areas by the end of the... Read More
Following September’s spell of warm weather putting a dampener on the launch of autumn and winter collections, retailers had hoped that the cooler October weather would cause consumers to head to the High Street and begin to purchase winter items such as coats, scarves and boots. Unfortunately, last month’s sales remained relatively... Read More
The design partnership behind London's Brent Cross shopping centre and the Dockland's wildlife sanctuary at Canada Water have been hired to produce a controversial £1bn development master plan for a Kent airport. Last autumn Stagecoach bus company co-founder, Ann Gloag, acquired the loss-making Manston Airport for one-pound from former... Read More
As the Big Four supermarkets continue to struggle against the discounters, many are making the decision to cut back on large store openings as a means of expanding their convenience networks. However, it has emerged that discount brand Aldi is engaging in the completely opposite strategy, with executives revealing it intends to almost double... Read More
With completion not expected until 2016, the developer behind Leeds' Victoria Gate project says the £150m retail complex is already one-third let. Work started in April on the Hammerson-backed scheme, to include one of the largest John Lewis stores outside of London at 265,000sq ft, with the official opening for the "aspirational... Read More
Thanks to the upcoming HS2 project, combined with an increasingly buoyant local economy, commercial property in the West Midlands is enjoying one of its strongest revivals to date. Along with industrial units, this has seen the office market enjoy a period of strong prosperity, with the Solihull office market set to benefit from its most... Read More
Supermarkets are having a very difficult time of late, with the Big Four facing increasing levels of competition from discount rivals such as Aldi and Lidl. As a result of falling sales and plummeting market share, therefore, Sainsbury’s has this week indicated that it will be scrapping its large scale store openings programme, along with... Read More
TK Maxx — the European brand of US department store chain TJ Maxx — is opening a 30,000sq ft flagship store within Edinburgh's St Andrew Square development. Already the largest new retail letting in the city centre since the 2011 opening of Primark, the pre-let deal is the first to be agreed for the joint venture regeneration project... Read More
Tesco, once the most dominant retailer in the grocery market, has suffered a number of losses in the past few years, with profit warnings, falling sales and a plunge in market share all contributing to bringing the group back down to earth with a bang. Unfortunately, it appears that this situation is unlikely to be resolved any time soon,... Read More
The developers behind the £30m transformation of Manchester's Corn Exchange have confirmed that at least a dozen caterers have already sign up for space at the prestige-dining destination. Building work on the Grade II listed building is set to be completed by early next summer with the first restaurants opening in July. Among the first... Read More
The majority of Scotland's third quarter commercial deals were squeezed into the two weeks following the independence "No" vote, one of the country's biggest property organisations has claimed. More than £962m worth of Scottish commercial, retail and industrial real estate was traded between July and September, almost double this... Read More
A Cheshire commercial development has signed its seventh new tenant in as many weeks. Bank Quay House, on Warrington’s Sankey Street, is owned and directly managed by Python Properties, a property company focusing on bespoke high-quality town centre offices. It purchased the property in 2006 and, says founding partner Martin Johnson,... Read More
Council planners have given the go-ahead for the rolling redevelopment of the former European headquarters of pharmaceutical giant Pfizer. Developer Discovery Park Ltd (DPL) bought the 180-acre site — just north of Sandwich in Kent — when Pfizer vacated in 2011. After renaming the site “Discovery Park” it submitted an... Read More
Dublin’s 50-year-old Aer Lingus headquarters building is to get a “gold standard” upgrade according to plans announced by the city’s airport authority. Fingal County Council is expected to approve the multi-million Euro regeneration of the state airline’s landmark six-storey office block, aimed at attracting international... Read More
Immofinanz Group has completed work on its first VIVO! shopping centre in Pila, Poland. The grand opening ceremony was held on October 17 with further programmes held over the weekend. City government representatives, Immofinanz Group and Rank Progress attended the festivities. Immofinanz Group took over the property, which was... Read More
Wigan is set to benefit from a large scale commercial development scheme, with proposals by Vale Retail expected to be approved next week. Designed by Edinburgh based Comprehensive Design Architects and covering a total of 500,000 sq ft, the £60 million development will see The Galleries Shopping Centre partially demolished in order... Read More
CBRE has released a new report which forecasts another good year for the US commercial real estate market in 2015. And Philadelphia has been singled out as one of the cities that are expected to see big increases in activity. The market report was delivered as part of CBRE’s 2015 national forecast series called Moving up the Risk... Read More
Selfidges has announced that its sales for the last financial year increased by 10.4 per cent and its operating profit attained the highest level in its 105-year history. The Group stated that sales were more than £1.2bn for 2013 and that operating profit increased by 12.3 percent to £150m. All its retail channels reported year on... Read More
The Crown Estate has announced a wave of pre-lets at its much-anticipated Banbury Gateway Fashion Park, as work began on the site earlier this week. The Crown Estate, which already owns and runs a total of 16 successful retail destinations including Cheshire Oaks and London’s Regent Street, has now purchased the site from LXB Retail... Read More
After yesterday’s confirmation that it is the subject of a possible takeover bid, reports this morning state that Canary Wharf Group owner Songbird Estates has rejected the overtures. In a statement released in response to media speculation, Songbird acknowledged the interest from Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and Brookfield... Read More
Manchester-based Sixtwo Architects has been hired to transform one of the city’s neglected mills into a “new type of office space with a raw industrial feel”. The commission has come from specialist regeneration developer Urban Splash which is planning to convert Stubbs Mill in Piercy Street, a former Ancoats machine works, into... Read More
