They say the best things in life are worth waiting for. On 7 September the people of Bracknell will decide whether that maxim rings true when the £240m Lexicon scheme opens its doors.
They have endured 20 years of drama and delays, during which time their town centre has spiraled into decline. Can 580,000 sq ft of new retail and leisure space now help Bracknell fulfill its potential?
Built in 1949 as one of the country’s ten new towns, Bracknell represented a new dawn for urban development. Yet as it grew, the town failed to evolve. Retail spend leaked to the likes of Reading and Camberley and civic leaders struggled to reverse Bracknell’s fortunes.
Yet today Bracknell is the first post-war new town to undergo comprehensive redevelopment. As the centerpiece of a £760m regeneration programme, The Lexicon will transform a 90-acre chunk of town centre space into an open street-shopping destination.
Developed by the Bracknell Regeneration Partnership (BRP) – a joint venture between Legal & General Capital and Schroder UK Real Estate Fund working in partnership with Bracknell Forest Council – the scheme is already 92% prelet by floor area.
Integrating a range of zones, it has endeavoured to appeal to the whole spectrum of shoppers. Primark stands out as the highlight of value retail, sitting alongside a comprehensive mid-market offer including a two-storey M&S anchor, Topshop, H&M and Next.
For the more affluent shopper, The Lexicon’s other anchor is an 80,000 sq ft flagship Fenwick store, the company’s first new opening for 14 years. The scheme’s Avenues area also boasts a range of aspirational brands including Joules, Seasalt and Timberland.
BRP has also managed to secure a comprehensive line-up of leisure operators. A 12-screen Cineworld will be complemented by 11 restaurants including Nando’s, Wagamama, Gourmet Burger Kitchen and Carluccio’s.
Richard Poyser, leasing manager at L&G, says: “It’s been a long journey. We’re still trying to get deals across the line and hope to be up to 97% prelet by 7 September. Given the macro backdrop of Brexit and the General Election, we’re very pleased with where we’ve got to.”
For L&G, that long journey began back in 1997 when it submitted its first planning applications to develop Bracknell town centre. The developer then spent years battling against rival plans by BRT – a joint venture between Schroders and Allied London Properties. The feuding pair finally agreed to a joint masterplan in 2002, only for the development to be derailed by the 2008 financial crash.
“We could write a book about this project – we’ve seen it all,” says Marc Brunel-Walker, Bracknell Forest Council executive member for economic development and regeneration.
After the recession, there were further delays as plans were revisited and L&G attempted to offload its stake in the partnership. “But we got there,” says Brunel-Walker. “It all came down to having the right scale and balance of scheme for the local area and an unwavering commitment from the council to get it delivered.”
FIRST LOOK: Inside Bracknell’s Lexicon
Changing perceptions
Yet the two-decade saga took its toll on an already failing town centre. Poyser admits that changing retailers’ perceptions of Bracknell was a tough challenge and the scheme’s joint agents CBRE and Lunson Mitchenall had their work cut out.
CBRE executive director Mark Disney says: “The town’s reputation was so poor that many retailers would respond: ‘Bracknell! Why would I want to go there?’”
He adds: “Once they arrived and saw what was being delivered, they were very impressed. Over the past six months when they’ve seen the work take shape, the conversion rate has been amazing.”
Once you buy into the vision of a redeveloped town centre, Bracknell’s credentials as a retail destination are compelling. Home to businesses such as 3M, Fujitsu, Panasonic, Dell and Hewlett Packard, Bracknell Forest has one of the highest proportions of foreign-owned company headquarters in the country.
It is surrounded by an affluent hinterland, with the potential to draw in wealthy shoppers from the likes of Sunningdale and Ascot. According to FSP Retail research, Bracknell’s catchment could reach 1m by 2024.
FSP associate consultant Miranda Botcherby says: “There are massive misconceptions among retailers about what Bracknell has to offer. It is a hugely affluent area with a growing catchment and The Lexicon will help reposition the town.”
Bracknell’s potential to woo a wealthier demographic was boosted back in 2011 when Waitrose opened a 36,000 sq ft store, the first new retail build in Bracknell town centre for 20 years.
L&G’s Poyser insists the arrival of Waitrose was a game changer. He says: “You just had to look at the car park to see who it was attracting. It gave us the confidence that if you deliver the right product, aspirational shoppers will come.”
Judging the impact
The Lexicon’s impact will be closely monitored. It has already set new records for Bracknell’s retail rents and it is hoped the uplift will be felt throughout the town.
Lunson Mitchenall director Richard Cripps has worked on the project for the past 14 years and is enthusiastic about its legacy. He says: “The town’s zone A retail rents had fallen to around £80 per sq ft and we’ve done deals at The Lexicon at between £150 and £160 per sq ft. That has surpassed the pre-crash headline of £110 per sq ft and is testament to the quality of product on offer.”
Local agent Nick Hardy of Page Hardy Harris says Bracknell’s regeneration is already changing sentiment and encouraging greater activity right across the commercial property market. He says: “We’ve transacted 40,000 sq ft in the local area over the past 12 months – 50% up on last year. The arrival of The Lexicon is definitely a contributing factor.”
Hardy is keen to point out, though, that The Lexicon is not the only piece in the regeneration jigsaw.
Alongside filling The Lexicon, BRP will also be focusing on the remainder of its 1m sq ft retail and leisure portfolio. Plans are in place to reposition Bracknell’s Princess Square shopping centre and the partnership has also secured planning consent to transform Fenwick’s former store into a 52,000 sq ft leisure scheme.
Meanwhile, the council is continuing to work with the private sector to deliver a £760m regeneration programme, covering everything from homes and highways to health and education. It is also revisiting its 2002 masterplan and consulting with the public on the future of other development sites.
“Now The Lexicon is about to open, perceptions of Bracknell are going to change drastically and we’ve had approaches from a number of developers,” says Brunel-Walker. “What we now need to do is take a breath, seek advice and ask people what they want.”
What the occupiers say
Boots
Boots is all too familiar with the Bracknell market, having had a presence in the town’s Princess Square shopping centre. Its commitment to a new 19,500 sq ft store at The Lexicon will allow it to boost its floorspace by 75%.
Boots estate manager Paul Goodacre says: “It’s taken a long time to get this scheme delivered and they’ve had to work hard to change retailer’s perceptions. If you’d talked to some occupiers about coming to Bracknell five years ago, they would have pulled a face.”
He adds: “We’re very excited about what The Lexicon can do for Bracknell, the new shoppers it will be able to attract and its potential to create a compelling retail destination.”
Zizzi
On 7 September Zizzi will open its first Bracknell restaurant in The Lexicon’s F&B hub, Eagle Lane.
The restaurant’s general manager, Alex Cox, says: “Bracknell has really suffered from a lack of investment and it became a ghost town after 5:30. I doubt Zizzi would have had a reason to come if it hadn’t been for this scheme and its ability to create an evening economy.”
For Cox, part of The Lexicon’s appeal for occupiers is its ability to cater for such a wide range of offers. He says: “From Primark to Fenwick, they’ve managed to cover all the bases and that’s going to appeal to a vast array of people.”
Fact file: The Lexicon
580,000 sq ft of new build space
70 retail and leisure units
15,000 workers within walking distance
28% Amount local household income exceeds UK average
21% Amount expenditure in catchment exceeds UK average
