Soho Estates has appointed Colliers to secure a high-profile leisure occupier for an iconic more than £100million redevelopment in London’s premier entertainment hotspot
A once in a lifetime opportunity for an iconic entertainment brand to reinvent a corner of London’s Leicester Square through a specially curated 200,000 sq ft new development is being offered by Soho Estates.
The family-owned West End landlord has instructed global real estate advisor Colliers to secure a pre-let with a globally renowned leisure brand. The expected more than £100million development, next to the famous Odeon Cinema covers 17-21 Leicester Square 13-17 Bear Street, will be designed in conjunction with the new entrant.
With more than 100,000 people entering or exiting the area daily through its Tube station and 2.5 million visitors every week, Leicester Square is the capital’s premium entertainment district. It hosts weekly blockbuster premiers at its multiple cinemas, has several food and drink operators, casinos, hotels and several flagship retail stores.
Philip Thompson from Soho Estates said: “As a long term investor in the West End, we are committed to leaving our legacy in Leicester Square by attracting a quality brand which will have broad appeal to the area’s visitors. As with our Soho developments at Greek Street and Dean Street with Soho House and Warner Bros at Illona Rose House, we are looking to secure a long-term partnership with a global brand and build a bespoke new property to suit their needs, which we hope will become synonymous with the area.”
Soho Estates has already discussed its plans with the local planning authority and believe there’s an opportunity to create up to 200,000 sq ft of space over multiple levels, after it received vacant possession of the site from the office occupiers above as well Zoo Bar, Burger King, Pizza Hut and Chiquito in 2025.
Ross Kirton, Head of Leisure Agency at Colliers said: “Leicester Square is known globally and this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to secure such a prime location and partner with a landlord that wants to create a development that is bespoke to an occupiers’ needs. We’re looking for specifically for a leisure anchor tenant for the site, but there are likely to be several opportunities within the wider development as the plans evolve.”
