Serviced office provider agrees deal for landmark city centre development

Gary Neville’s Relentless Developments has signed a deal with premium serviced office provider, Gilbanks, for its landmark Manchester development, No.1 St Michael’s.

The Leeds-based flexible office space provider will take 34,000 sq ft at the £400m development. The announcement follows an extensive search and selection process for a serviced office partner at the new development.

Gary Neville, director at Relentless Developments, said: “Gilbanks is raising the bar within the serviced office market by focusing on distinctively designed buildings in prime locations.

“This echoes our own vision for St Michael’s as we set new standards for sustainable commercial workspace here in Manchester.”

The move will see Gilbanks create its largest community for office professionals to date, when it moves into the building at the end of this year.

No.1 St Michael’s will add to Gilbanks’ operations which are already running at 1 Park Row in Leeds and at 11 York Street in Manchester city centre.

Alex Duckett, managing director of Gilbanks, said: “By partnering with Relentless Developments on the St Michael’s project, we are making a clear statement that we are committed to working with ambitious and innovative developers on projects that will set new standards in the industry.

“The new professional community at St Michael’s will feature the latest technology to enable hybrid working for companies with global ambitions.”

No.1 St Michael’s is expected to be the first fully Net Zero Carbon commercial development in the city, both in operation and delivery.

The nine floors of office space will also have a Japanese-Peruvian rooftop restaurant from Chotto Matte.

Construction began in January 2022 and completion is due later this year. The scheme is being brought to the market through a collaboration between Relentless Developments and stakeholders KKR.

Andrew Cowell, transactions and asset management at OBI, which is acting on behalf of Gilbanks, said: “Our mandate was to find the best-in-class building in Manchester for Gilbanks and St Michael’s fully delivers against this brief.

“St Michael’s is lifting the standard for new build office developments in the city and will become a flagship location for Gilbanks to grow their portfolio of high-quality managed workspace.”

Joe Rigby, senior director at CBRE, acting for Relentless Developments, added: “Our client recognised that a provision of the high-quality flexible workspace was a critical consideration in creating a thriving ecosystem and community for a development of this scale.

“Gilbanks was quickly identified as the preferred flexible workspace partner owing to their reputation and quality of clients which fully complement the vision for St Michael’s as a destination for ambitious professional businesses in the city.”

Law firm Clarion acted for Gilbanks on this transaction.