Schroder UK Real Estate Fund has acquired a portfolio of assets in Hammersmith from the Matterhorn Palos Partnership for £153 million in an off market transaction.
The acquisition comprises the 340,000 sq ft Kings Mall Shopping Centre, the 1,000 space Kings Mall car park and One Lyric Square, an adjoining self-contained office building.
Kings Mall, which has undergone significant refurbishment over the last few years, is home to over 40 retail tenants, including H&M, Sainsburys, River Island and Primark, in addition to a range of eateries and coffee houses. Situated in the heart of Hammersmith, within close proximity to Hammersmith, Ravenscourt Park and Baron’s Court tube stations, the mall serves a large catchment area and enjoys substantial footfall.
One Lyric Square, which sits directly above the mall, provides high quality, flexible office accommodation, and is currently 100% let off a highly reversionary passing rent. With the headquarters of Disney, L’Oreal and Sony all based in Hammersmith, and the Earl’s Court Exhibition Centre and Olympia Conference Centre located nearby, Hammersmith’s reputation as a popular business hub continues to grow.
Commenting on the transaction, James Lass, Fund Manager, Schroder UK Real Estate Fund, said:
“This is a clear demonstration of our strategy to capitalise on the strong growth we are witnessing throughout the London markets outside of the traditional ‘core’ with further strategic acquisitions where we see potential to add value through asset management . This asset fits that brief and enjoys strong connectivity with attractive amenity for occupiers. All the component parts of this deal include highly reversionary rents and provide us with significant opportunity for adding income and value.”
Michael Elliot and CBRE acted for SREF and JLL and David Baroukh Associates acted for Matterhorn Palos Partnership.
