F&C Reit on behalf of Friends Life has struck a deal with US clothing and footwear company VF Corporation to take the whole of landmark office block The Curve on Nottingham’s ng2 business park.
The deal will see its European arm VF Northern Europe create a new customer service centre in Nottingham at the 30,000 sq ft building.
A 10-year lease has been agreed at an undisclosed rent, believed to be around £15 per sq ft. F&C Reit asset manages the building on behalf of Friends Life.
The Curve has lain vacant since the previous tenant, the Lloyds Banking Group, pulled out of the scheme during the economic downturn in 2010.
VF Corporation, owner of brands such as The North Face, Timberland, Vans, Kipling, Eastpak, Wrangler and Lee, looked at various sites including Sherwood Park , and sites in south Nottingham and Derby before taking space at The Curve.
The company, which has an annual turnover of $11bn (£6.7bn), will now expand its existing Nottingham business by moving several of its European wholesale and e-commerce customer service functions to the city.
VF also has a historic facility at Calverton in Nottingham, which houses jeans brand Wrangler’s UK base.
A spokesperson for VF said: “We are pleased to expand in the Nottingham area, as VF has a strong history at our Calverton site.”
Just 49,000 sq ft of grade A office space was let in Nottingham city centre throughout the whole of 2013, which was more than double 2012’s take-up total of 21,000 sq ft.
CBRE and Innes England advised VF Corporation; FHP acted for F&C Reit and Friends Life.
lisa.pilkington@estatesgazette.com
