CSC extols virtues of Trafford Centre deal
CAPITAL Shopping Centres today hailed its “transformational” £1.6bn deal to buy the Trafford Centre in January last year and unveiled plans for a further upgrade of Barton Square.
The company, which owns 10 of the UK’s top 25 centres including Lakeside, Manchester’s Arndale and Braehead, this morning announced a 31% increase in income for 2011 to £364m and a 1p increase in its net asset value per share of 391p. The overall value of its net assets increased to £2.9bn (£2.3bn).
However, write-downs in the value of derivative financial instruments held by the firm and higher finance costs meant that pre-tax profits plummeted by 93% to £27.2m (2010: £446.2m)
The company said that it planned to spend £32m on upgrades to the Trafford Centre, which is valued at £1.7bn – an increase of around £500m. It said that future development will be focussed on the Barton Square extension, where a planning application to enclose the courtyard had already been approved.
During the year, Debenhams and M&S extended their anchor stores and it achieved improvements to its tenant mix, including the first Banana Republic store in the North. Other high-end tenants are expected to follow.
The value of the Manchester Arndale – a joint venture with Prupim – also increased by £22m during the year, which the company’s chief executive David Fischel attributed to “consistent lettings well above previous tone”.
He said that the tough economic conditions and a spending squeeze forced on consumers meant that spending patterns and habits have been changing, with more purchases being made online and in larger centres.
“With shoppers becoming more demanding in looking for their preferred combination of product, experience and service, top shopping centres such as CSC’s with a compelling mix of retail brands, catering and leisure have shown increasing footfall and retailer sales in contrast to the UK overall data which shows reductions.”
Chairman Patrick Burgess also thanked the executive team who “engineered the smooth absorption of The Trafford Centre into our operations”, particularly ex-Peel man Mike Butterworth, who is now the group’s chief operating officer.
“We have greatly appreciated the important contribution across our entire business with stimulating ideas for many of our centres from John Whittaker in the role of deputy chairman,” he added.
