Gazeley is selling its first major asset since its takeover by Brookfield Asset Management, setting a record yield for a shed since the downturn.
Canada Life and Aviva Investors were this week vying to buy the industrial developer’s John Lewis scheme at Magna Park , Milton Keynes, for just over £70m – reflecting a yield of around 5%.
Brookfield said after its takeover of Gazeley in June that it intended to build a sheds portfolio, expanding the business from a developer and trader of warehousing into a full-service logistics asset manager.
But it is understood to have decided to sell the John Lewis warehouse development (pictured) after receiving a flood of enquiries from pension funds attracted to its strong covenant.
Gazeley signed a deal with John Lewis in March to develop a 675,000 sq ft shed, with the retailer signing a 30-year lease at £5.75 per sq ft with annual RPI-linked uplifts.
A source said: “This sets a record for this cycle. But this is a unique asset owing to its exceptionally strong covenant. The pension funds were all over it.”
The development adjoins John Lewis’s existing 600,000 sq ft depot at Magna Park, which is owned by the Crown Estate.
Savills and Jones Lang LaSalle acted for Gazeley.
nick.whitten@estatesgazette.com
