Towngate Business Park sold to Harworth Group in £12.7m deal

A Cheshire business park has been acquired by property developer Harworth Group for £12.7m

Towngate Business Park, a multi-let industrial estate and former Golden Wonder food factory in Widnes was sold by landlords Towngate Plc.

The estate comprises a total of 262,000 sq ft of industrial space, which has been divided into nine warehouse units.

Harworth’s acquisition is part of the group’s strategy of growing its income portfolio to cover overheads from recurring rental income from investments offering ‘value enhancement opportunities.’

The acquisition has been funded by proceeds from the company’s active churn strategy in its income portfolio, recycling capital through the disposal of non-core assets or those where the Harworth has completed its asset management business plans.

Most recently, this included the £3.3m sale of Lynfield Park, the former Alcan Rio Tinto smelter in Northumberland, in February 2021, ahead of book value.

Richard Bousfield, head of income at Harworth Group, said: “Towngate Business Park is a fantastic addition to our income portfolio, adding recurring income whilst also presenting asset management opportunities to generate future value.

“The acquisition builds on our ambition to grow our exposure in the North West, where the industrial market continues to see very high levels of occupier demand and extremely limited supply which is resulting in positive rental growth forecasts.”

Towngate Business Park tenants include Initial Packaging Solutions and Liverpool-headquartered integrated flooring solutions specialist QA.

Harworth was advised by Metis Real Estate Advisors and Freeths LLP. The vendor was represented by B8 Real Estate and Littler Associates.