Kwik Fit landlord gets £39m funding from RBS

KWIK Fit landlord GE Prem KF has agreed a £39m funding facility from the RBS real estate finance team. 

The firm, which owns a significant number of Kwik Fit car repair sites across the UK – including ones in Birmingham, Kidderminster and Worcester – is a joint venture real estate investment vehicle by GE Capital Real Estate Europe (75%) and Paradigm Real Estate Managers (25%).

The new three-year facility has been put in place to support the management team, which is based in Glasgow, with its strategy to improve value and fund further development opportunities.

Kwik Fit, the leading suppliers of tyres in the UK with 570 centres, was acquired in June 2011 by the Japanese conglomerate ITOCHU. It has announced plans for the long-term expansion of the Kwik Fit brand across the UK.

Stuart Heslop, head of real estate for Scotland at RBS, said: “We are delighted to be able to continue working with the team at Paradigm and GE Capital Real Estate in managing and developing the Kwik Fit portfolio.

“This new financing together with other recent financings for both existing and new clients demonstrates our ongoing commitment and support of the UK real estate market.

“This is an exciting opportunity to develop these assets further and we will look to add value to the portfolio where possible by working closely with these two highly valued clients.”