Adam Tinworth finds a surprising amount of retail activity amid the patchwork of rural towns.
There are no big towns on Scotland’s west coast. Linked by a network of single carriageways threading between small villages, at first glance it looks like an area which major retailers studiously ignore.
But the travel times between towns are surprisingly good – unless you encounter a lorry. And the large catchment areas around the towns make them nearly as attractive as larger towns to retailer and leisure operators. Take Kilmarnock. “The relatively short prime pitch in Kilmarnock continues to perform well with top zone A rents showing approximately £619 per m2 (£57.50 per sq ft),” says John Menzies of Chesterton.
Vico Properties, NIG Skandia and BICC Developments’ plan to develop 18,849m2 (95,250 sq ft) of leisure/retail facilities at the north end of the prime King Street area have been revised. Formerly known as Portland Mall, the enclosed scheme will now remain uncovered and has been renamed Portland Gate.
“At the moment we’re hoping to be on site in the new year,” says Paul D’Analeze of Healey & Baker, joint agent on the scheme with Alan Watt & Co. They have already prelet 2,323m2 (25,000 sq ft) to Gala Bingo, while 929m2 (10,000 sq ft) is under offer toJD Wetherspoon.
“We’re still preletting. There’s 372m2 (4,000 sq ft) under offer to a fashion operator. We’re confident that once people see it coming out of the ground it’ll fill up,” says D’Analeze.
Not everyone is so confident. “There remains doubt as to Kilmarnock’s potential to soak up the pending increase in supply, although the proposed bingo hall, car park and improved streetscape could be the catalysts Portland Gate needs to attract retailer interest,” says Menzies.
Meanwhile, the town’s Burns Mall, celebrating its 21st anniversary this year, has landed Argos as a new tenant. “We acted on behalf of the landlord, Land Securities, which was proactive in not only taking back leases to create the space required but also in speculatively creating a 279m2 (3,000 sq ft) unit adjoining the Argos store,” says Drew Waddell of Culverwell & Co. “The remaining store is now under offer to a major multiple retailer.”
On the edge of Kilmarnock, Dawn Developments has let several units on its 20,438m2 (220,000 sq ft) Queen’s Drive retail and leisure development. Joint letting agents Montagu Evans and Smith Cole Wright have secured Asda, Carpetwise and Currys, with a further unit under offer to Pets At Home. On the leisure side, Odeon Cinemas has signed up to operate an eight-screen cinema.
The cinema is going head to head with THI’s development on the other side of Queens Drive, where Warner Village Cinemas is lined up to be anchor tenant, conditional on funding and planning permission. A 3,252m2 (35,000 sq ft) seven-screen multiplex is planned. Letting agents are James Barr & Son and Mason Owen.
“I believe we have the best site and that our scheme will happen,” says Ian Smith of THI. But Martin Gudaitis of Montagu Evans is also confident. “We have the only definite multiplex in Kilmarnock. The deal with Odeon is unconditional,” he says.
Nearby, the coastal town of Ayr is seeing business pick up. “Ayr suffered during the recession but it is making a comeback,” says Menzies. “High Street zone A rents are rising and the lack of available prime space, together with the number of unsatisfied requirements, could see them breaking through the £700 per m2 (£65 per sq ft) mark in the near future.”
This confidence is shared by Waddell. “We are marketing the former Halifax Building Society at 177-179 High Street and the interest expressed leads us to believe that rents in Ayr will grow,” says he. Market rumour has Dixon’s The Link paying £727 per m2 (£67.50 per sq ft) for 173 High Street, which would smash existing records.
There are also plans for a multiplex. Henry Lax has submitted an application for a 2,787m2 (30,000 sq ft) building on Heathfield Road. The firm is in discussion with operators, and hopes to have signed a prelet before Christmas.
“Ayr and Irvine certainly overlap with each other and offer a choice for residents in Ayrshire,” says Menzies. “While prime shopping in Ayr is High Street based, comparable retailers in Irvine are found under cover in the Rivergate Centre. The Scottish weather certainly plays its part here – Ayr is often the dry-weather choice while Irvine attracts shoppers when it is wet.”
At the Rivergate Centre in Irvine zone A rates are approximately £538 per m2 (£50 per sq ft).
Dumfries has the south-west of Scotland virtually to itself. Any retailer looking at the area has little choice of where to go, which is good news for Donaldsons, sole letting agent on the Loreburne Centre.
In the past 12 months, units have been let to Going Places, Semi-Chem, DX Communications and B’Wise. “Retailers at the centre are, on the whole, performing well above target and some are having their best year yet,” says Lisa Pollock of Donaldsons. “The centre is a natural extension of the High Street and attracts a footfall of approximately 80,000 per week.”
Semi-Chem has relocated from elsewhere in the town. “We have been keen for a re-site for some time as we have been noticing a shift in pedestrian flows in the town centre due to the impact of the Loreburne Centre,” says company general manager Peter MacNab.
Out of town there are two competing retail schemes. Cuckoo Bridge, a scheme by J Sainsbury Developments and Teesdale Developments, comprises 17,651m2 (190,000 sq ft) across 12 units, including a food store. Letting agents are Mason Owen and Healey & Baker. Alisdair Coates of Mason Owen points out that the scheme still has “a highways matter to be resolved”.
The other scheme is the 7,800m2 (83,961 sq ft) Dumfries Retail Park, developed by Helios Properties and funded by Pillar.
The first phase was a 2,787m2 (30,000 sq ft) Great Mills unit, while the second phase is now under construction. Gudaitis says that one unit is under offer to PetSmart and a second unit is about to follow. “The other site has problems with road access, so people are jumping aboard our scheme,” he says.
| TRANSACTION |
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| 68-72 High Street, Dumfries: Investment. Hill Samuel Property Unit Trust has acquired the units from Boots Properties for £2.58m, reflecting an initial yield of 6.7%. The tenant line up is Mothercare, Richards and Supasnaps, producing a rent roll of £178,000 pa. Ryden acted for Boots Properties. Hill Smuel was represented by Hill Samuel Asset Management and Gooch & Wagstaff. |
