June 2000 Delma Developments establishes itself as a privately-owned company May 2003 Jonathan Ashcroft recruited as senior project manager, formerly responsible for the Manchester Office of Faithful & Gould
February 2004 The company completes its most prestigious project, that of 47,000 sq ft of grade A office space in 28 St Andrew Square, Edinburgh
June 2004 The company completes 1m sq ft of development, all of which has been retained by Northern Trust
Chorley-based Delma Developments has its origins in property investment company Northern Trust. It was set up in 2000 after Keith Bolton, who was originally recruited as managing director of Northern Trust, realised that a large proportion of his time was spent on developments.
“We became busier on developments and had less time for investments. It seemed sensible to set up a new company based purely on development,” explains Bolton, who is the managing director for Delma.
Delma undertakes projects in commercial and industrial property development on behalf of its sister property investment company, Northern Trust, which has a portfolio of more than 8m sq ft.
The focus of its activity is mainly out-of-town office parks. Bolton cites the 110,000 sq ft Ackhurst Business Park in Chorley (see above) as the company’s most successful scheme so far.
Being a privately-owned company means that the business isn’t subject to the demand of shareholders, comments Bolton. “It means that we can be flexible to tenants and we are not tied in to 15-year leases.”
The firm focuses purely on speculative developments and avoids the prelet market, where there is intense competition.
“Our advantage over the market is that we develop everything on a speculative basis, and there is not much space developed on a speculative basis so the market isn’t that competitive,” reflects Bolton.
The long-term strategic aims of the firm are to continue to make a profit and get a better geographical spread, as most of their schemes are primarily in the North West. “We are looking to expand the business in three areas – Yorkshire, Midlands and Scotland.”
The turnover between sister companies Northern Trust and Delma Developments was £30m in 2003.
1995 Centre Island Hotels set up as a privately-funded company by Simon Matthews-Williams, the founder of Centre Island
1998 Centre Island opens the 159-bed Crowne Plaza, Liverpool
2001 Buys Express by Holiday Inn, Albert Dock, Liverpool
2003 Generates a turnover of £17.5m
Centre Island specialises in the development and management of internationally-branded franchised hotels, and has its roots firmly planted in the North West.
“Our philosophy is based on location. We operate hotels that are in major commercial centres, transport hubs or communication hubs,” comments Mark Foster, operations director at the company, which is 100% owned by anonymous Irish investors.
Much of the company’s attention is focused on Liverpool, the European City of Culture for 2008. “This has brought massive investment for the region. We now operate four hotels in Liverpool city centre,” says Foster. He cites the recent openings of Radisson and Malmaison as evidence of a boom in the city’s leisure sector.
Foster claims that Centre Island stands out from its competitors by the fact that its hotels are managed from the locality rather than from a distance. “We can get to our hotels in a hour’s drive,” he says.
One of the firm’s most significant deals has been the 159-bedroomed Crowne Plaza Hotel, its first investment in Liverpool (see above). “We brought this at a time when Liverpool was just about to start to regenerate. It’s part of our philosophy to get in when an area is just developing.” The company aims to expand the portfolio, especially in Manchester and Liverpool, comments Foster. “We have 760 rooms at the moment and aim to get 1,500 rooms by 2007, either by new builds or targeted branded acquisitions in commercial locations.”
1988 Magnus set up as a private limited company by its managing director Nick Hynes, Jerry Green (finance director) and Allan Snape (chairman)
1991 Edward Lockyer joins Magnus as Estates Director
1999 Joint venture with MEPC for 120-acre mixed-use business park in Birchwood Park, Warrington
2002 Joint venture entered into with Caddick Developments on 192 Altrincham Road, Sharston
Commercial property investor and developer Magnus specialises in North West office and industrial property. One of the driving forces behind establishing a private property company was to ensure that occupiers were getting a high level of customer service from the landlord, explains Edward Lockyer, estates director for Magnus, which is financed by the Royal Bank of Scotland.
“We recognised that occupiers weren’t getting the customer service they want. We buy, manage and own the building so that the occupier is not dealing with a third-party agent and therefore has a direct link through to the landlord.”
One of the firm’s most significant schemes has been the construction of the HQ for Complete Medical Communications at 21 King Edward Street, adjoining their existing premises at 19 King Edward Street. The two buildings are linked at all levels and provide 19,900 sq ft, trebling CMC’s workspace.
One of Magnus’s key objectives is to maintain good relationships with occupiers by offering its experience to larger companies that cannot provide regional expertise, says Lockyer.
The fact that Magnus is based in Cheshire means that the firm can capitalise on its good local knowledge of the office and industrial market in the south Manchester area, claims Lockyer. “We haven’t got the pressures of shareholders giving us a target for growth, and we will grow when we see opportunities.” The firm’s portfolio is valued at £50m, excluding its joint ventures.
February 1992 Harry Calder sets up the Calder Peel Partnership with Richard Peel
May 2002 Neil Lewin becomes managing director of Calder Peel Partnership
2004 Wins CABE Silver Standard Design Award for Didsbury Point
Harry Calder is the creative force behind Calder & Peel Architects. He set the business up in February 1992 after being made redundant, entering a 50/50 joint venture partnership with Richard Peel. He admits that redundancy was “the kick that was required”.
The Altrincham-based architectural practice specialises in large masterplanning and urban design projects of high-density and mixed-use in the North West, explains Harry Calder, the chairman of the practice. “We have a team just short of 50 people, and we are recognised as having a very good residential portfolio as well as good designers.”
Calder believes that the firm differentiates itself from its competitors by having a strong relationship with clients and strong relationships with its staff.
“We are not frightened of building buildings. It’s very easy to just get the planning, but we are fully capable of building the building and working with clients,” comments Calder.
One area that the practice is focusing on is the shared ownership market, where the government has set targets for 250,000 units in the next 10 years. Calder cites Didsbury Point as an example of architectural excellence.
This mixed-use development – comprising 350 residential units, 275,000 sq ft office and a 150-bed hotel – received a Commission for Architecture and Built Environment (CABE) Silver Standard Design Award in 2004.
Calder is confident about the future of the practice, pointing out that it has “experienced straight-line growth over the last 10 years with the target turnover approaching £3m”.
