John Lewis delivery hub sold for £6.2m

MUSE DEVELOPMENTS has sold John Lewis’ delivery hub at Logic Leeds.

AXA’s UK Long Lease Property Fund has bought the 50,500 sq ft site at the heart of Muse’s development in the Leeds City Region Enterprise Zone, which includes 4,000 sq ft of offices.

The forward-funding deal will mean Muse will build the warehouse, with work starting on site shortly, scheduled for completion in Spring next year.

John Lewis will be creating 65 jobs at the site, for which is has signed a 20-year lease, to help service orders from the John Lewis store in York, and its new flagship store site at Leeds’ Victoria Gate development.

John Lewis Leeds will be one of the retailer’s biggest department stores outside of London at 252,000 sq ft.

David Wells, development director of Muse in Leeds, explained: “This is an excellent investment deal, which demonstrates the buoyancy and strength of Yorkshire’s commercial property market.

“AXA’s UK Long Lease Property Fund is a major national fund, so it is tremendous news that they have invested in Leeds.

“The deal is also a ringing endorsement of our Logic Leeds development. We are already well-advanced on site with the construction of an 80,000 sq ft industrial building which is the largest of its kind to be speculatively developed in West Yorkshire since the recession. Together these two buildings will put Logic Leeds on the map.”

Logic Leeds has been supported by a landmark £2.5m grant agreement with Leeds City Council, funded through the government’s Building Foundations for Growth programme.

The Leeds offices of property consultants Knight Frank acted for Muse and Carter Towler and Wimbush RE for AXA.

Graham Foxton, investment partner of Knight Frank, commented: “This is one of the most investment significant deals in Yorkshire this year, with the yield a record for a prime, mid-size industrial property. It is a testimony to the quality of the tenant and the strength of the covenant, as well as the location and reputation of Logic Leeds itself.”