One Hardman Boulevard acquired by Luxembourg group
Parthena Reys, the Luxembourg-based real estate and private equity group, has acquired One Hardman Boulevard in Manchester’s Spinningfields district, for an undisclosed sum.
Figures in the region of £70m were to the fore in the summer when its future was under scrutiny after news that owner NatWest Group was to vacate the site and relocate to 1 Spinningfields Square.
Parthena Reys, which was advised on the deal for the 365,542 sq ft property by CBRE’s Investment Properties team in Manchester, plans to reposition the scheme, releasing newly-refurbished, best in class workspace back into the supply-starved Manchester market by end 2024.
The modern office building provides the city’s largest Grade A floor plate of c.40,000 sq ft, which is inherently flexible both vertically and horizontally, and capable of accommodating occupiers seeking 10,000 sq ft upwards.
Accommodation is spread over nine floors with ground floor retail and is situated in the internationally-renowned Spinningfields, one of the most successful urban developments in the UK, which has become a destination of choice for the region’s financial, professional and business services industry sectors.
The vision for One Hardman Boulevard is to reincarnate the building into a world class, flagship Grade A office development with market-leading ESG credentials, capitalising on occupier trends of higher take up in best-in-class assets and rental premiums for leading green buildings.
Parthena Reys will announce further details on the planned refurbishment work in early 2024.
Will Kennon, executive director at CBRE’s Investment Properties team, who led the transaction, said: “This acquisition represents a strategic, counter-cyclical investment by our client, acquiring a Grade A building in the heart of Spinningfields, with a business plan to release newly-refurbished workspace back into a supply starved market in 2025.
“With new-build development unviable at rents of below £50psf, we are expecting existing best-in-class assets to experience strong growth over the next 12-24 months and look forward to working with our client on the repositioning and leasing strategy.”
Addleshaw Goddard advised on the legals for Parthena Reys, with Cushman & Wakefield and DLA Piper advising NWG.
