Logistics operator expands portfolio in Midlands advised deal

CM Downton

A Midlands logistics business has expanded its operations with the acquisition of a 280,000 sq ft distribution hub.

The large warehouse is based on a 20-acre site at Newhouse Farm Distribution Centre in Chepstow, which previously belong to supermarket retailer Tesco.

Gloucester-based CM Downton was advised on the deal by the head of real estate at law firm Lodders, Paul Mourton.

Originally built specifically for Tesco in 1988, the property comprises a 248,975 sq ft temperature-controlled distribution warehouse with 16,000 sq ft of office space, a gatehouse, extensive lorry and trailer parking, and separate car parking.

The new site is close to another of site operated by the firm in Chepstow and brings the company’s total number of UK depots to 16, including in Avonmouth, Coventry, Leeds, Chatham, Kings Lynn and Gloucester, where it also has its head office.

Paul Mourton

Mr Mourton said the deal was a strategic one for the logistics firm as it opened up a potential gateway to the south west, as well as into Wales.

“It is a significant addition to its storage and distribution capacity across the country,” he said.

The deal is the latest is a string of commercial property transactions Lodders has advised on, including advising CM Downton on a 20-year lease of another distribution warehouse in the South West, plus the sale of a £200m portfolio of distribution warehouses, and acting for a landowner on a collaboration and development agreement for a new 46-hectare distribution hub.

Its real estate practice includes nine partners and 23 fee earners. The firm has offices in Birmingham, Stratford-upon-Avon, Henley-in-Arden and Cheltenham.

Berwin Leighton Paisner (London) acted for Tesco on the Newhouse Farm Distribution Centre deal, with Jones Lang LaSalle being sole agent.

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