Warwickshire-based developer IM Properties has welcomed two new national retailers to its Mell Square shopping centre in Solihull town centre, enhancing the site’s tenant mix.
Outdoor clothing and equipment company Mountain Warehouse and Italian coffee chain Caffe Nero have both taken units at the scheme on 10 year leases.
The letting to Caffe Nero will be in addition to its current presence on Solihull High Street, while this represents Mountain Warehouse’s first premises in the town.
Alongside bringing in new brands, IM Properties is also relocating existing occupiers to ensure that they’re in the best premises to suit their needs and the wider scheme, with fashion retailer Fat Face recently transferred to 23 Mill Lane from a unit in the adjacent Drury Lane.
Rob Hemus, IM Properties, said: “Mell Square offers a diverse mix of tenants and the retention and addition of well-known, national brands as Fat Face and Caffè Nero shows that our focus is very clearly set on ensuring the continued improvement and development of the site as a key destination within Solihull town centre.”
As a part of this strategy, every Sunday from 12th July to the 2nd August, Mell Square is hosting ‘Sunnyhull’, a series of free to attend summer events.
Themed around Fashion, Health and Beauty, Food and Drink, Kids Week and Home and Garden, the four-week programme has included a wide range of family-friendly activities, including celebrity performances, workshops, food stalls, pop-up shops and a cinema, fashion labs and live music.
The broad range of themes will provide tenants at Mell Square with an opportunity to actively promote and involve themselves in the events, as well as further establishing Mell Square as both a shopping destination and a day out for the whole family.
Rob Hemus added: “Our focus is to ensure that we are engaging with our tenants and centring on continually adding value and enhancing Mell Square’s position as a key retail location within Solihull, increasing both the number of visitors to the site and their dwell time. We want to create a strong sense of place and identity as well as a great retail experience and a location in its own right.”
Since acquiring Mell Square from Aviva in 2013, IM Properties has been focused on positioning the shopping centre as a key mixed-use retail leisure destination, extending its stakeholding at the site through the purchase of further retail units.
Most recently, this has included the acquisition of two retail units at the entrance to Mell Square, currently occupied by Whitewall Galleries and Clarks Shoes, for £4.25 million.
IM Properties has also recently secured planning permission for the redevelopment of two units on the corner of High Street and Drury Lane, for the delivery of a 12,626 sq ft mixed-use office building, with a ground floor restaurant that is already under offer to a restaurant operator.
IM Properties’ aspirations for Mell Square will be complementary to the wider work being undertaken across the M42 corridor, including the extension to the runway at Birmingham Airport, delivery of HS2 and creation of UK Central.