Schroder UK Real Estate Fund (‘SREF’) has completed a 103,000 sq ft letting at Chiltern Park, the fund’s modern industrial distribution asset in Dunstable, Bedfordshire.
Innovative Bites Limited, the exclusive UK distributors of Twinkies, Mega Marshmallows and other iconic American treats, has taken a seven year lease at the unit at a rent of £5.75 per sq ft. Representing a 5 per cent increase on the previous rental valuation, the letting has been agreed within six months of comprehensive refurbishment works at Chiltern Park, which SREF completed in February of this year.
Originally constructed in 1989 and acquired by SREF in 2005 by way of a sale and leaseback from Sports Direct, the unit now comprises a modern detached single storey warehouse of 95,000 sq ft, in addition to 8,000 sq ft of further ancillary office space and two service yards. Strategically located just off J11 of the M1, connections to the motorway will be further enhanced in 2017 with the completion of the new motorway Junction 11a and the Northern Dunstable A5 – M1 link road.
The letting takes the overall void rate for SREF’s £370 million national industrial and logistics portfolio to 2.8% of estimated rental value.
James Lass, Fund Manager at SREF, comments:
“The impressive low void rate we have established across our industrial and logistics portfolio is clear testament to the active asset management and marketing approach we undertake at each of our assets. At Chiltern Park, our strong focus on and execution of the strategy we devised on lease expiry at the end of 2015, has ensured that we have been in the best position possible to capitalise on the current strong momentum within the UK logistics and industrial sector.”
Strutt and Parker and Lambert Smith Hampton acted for SREF. Innovative Bites were unrepresented.
