Mailbox owners try again to sell landmark building

THE landmark Mailbox building in central Birmingham could be on sale early in the new year – three years after it was placed on the market for £200m.

Its owners Alan Chatham and Mark Billingham have appointed property consultancy GVA Grimley and real estate advisor CB Richard Ellis to asses the current market with a view to selling in 2011 if the right offer comes along.

This is the second time attempts have been made to sell the well known retail, leisure and residential former sorting office which opened in 2000.

In April 2007, the building was placed on the market with a £200m price tag which represented a potentially huge profit for Mr Chatham and Mr Billingham who bought the old Royal Mail depot for just £4m. It came off the market the following year.

Mr Chatham, director of Birmingham Mailbox Limited, said: “There is a great deal of demand for well let, cash generative properties but very few are actually coming to market.

“Those that have, have generally achieved excellent prices, as illustrated by the sale of properties at Brindleyplace earlier this year.

“We are therefore currently considering selling The Mailbox in the new year, subject to appropriate market conditions.

“As the UK’s largest mixed use building, The Mailbox is a significant landmark for Birmingham and has been a catalyst for further regeneration of the area.”

Tenants at the Mailbox include BBC Midlands, Harvey Nichols, Cafe Rouge, Tesco and a host of restaurants, bars and other shops.

Unlike in the 2007, The Cube is not included in this latest project. Mr Chatham was director of the building’s owner Birmingham Development Company which went into administration in March.

He added that Mailbox tenants had traded well during the recession and a planning application would be submitted next year for his other project, the former Birmingham Post and Mail offices in Birmingham city centre.