John Cutts’ Mountpark Logistics is continuing its development drive with the acquisition of a 20-acre site at south-west England’s largest distribution park.
It has bought land at Delta Properties’ 600-acre Central Park in Bristol, where it plans a 410,000 sq ft speculative warehouse development.
It will build three sheds – of 85,000 sq ft, 125,000 sq ft and 200,000 sq ft.
Mountpark has agreed to pay about £6m for the site, opposite a 33-acre site where Lidl has plans for a 600,000 sq ft warehouse, and near a 55-acre site where home and garden retailer The Range will create a new 1.2m sq ft hub.
Cutts’ decision to build speculatively reflects the shortage of big box space in the logistics market, coupled with an increase in take-up.
Data from Savills shows that in the first quarter of this year, take-up of UK warehouse space exceeded 6.9m sq ft, which was 16% up on the previous quarter and 24% above the long-term average.
Since the beginning of the year, 32 units comprising 5.3m sq ft have been built, of which 1.9m sq ft was classified as speculative development.
Even with the increase in speculative development, the supply pipeline of grade-A big box warehousing yet to be built continues to fall and stands at just 9.8m sq ft, down 4.9% on last year.
Mountpark recently sold a 1.3m sq ft distribution centre for £120m which it had developed and let to Amazon in Bardon, Leicestershire – one of the largest single asset sales in the logistics market to date.
Knight Frank and GVA acted for Delta; DTRE advised Mountpark.
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