Meadowhall still attracting retailers says British Land

BRITISH Land today said it is continuing to perform well despite tough markets and said Meadowhall is continuing to attract new retailers including upmarket underwear chain Victoria’s Secret.

The property group, which owns London office buildings and regional retail centres including Meadowhall in Sheffield, said that occupancy rates in its portfolio remained unchanged at 97.7% at the end of 2012 with rents in administration remaining low at 0.8%.

In an interim management statement for the three months to December 31, British Land said that consumer spending in the UK held up relatively well over the Christmas quarter and it said its most significant letting was to US chain Victoria’s Secret for a 13,000 square foot store at Meadowhall, which will open in the autumn.

Chris Grigg, chief executive said: “The business continues to perform well in markets which remain tough overall. We’ve continued to see good demand for our properties, which means our occupancy remains high and our developments are now significantly pre-let well ahead of completion.  While we remain cautious about the near-term environment, we are confident that British Land is not only defensive in today’s challenging markets but also well positioned to deliver future growth from existing and new investments.”
                                  
The group said that it acquired a site in Lancaster city centre during the quarter and had signed a development agreement with the city council for a 10 acre retail-led mixed use scheme worth £75m.

It is also waiting for planning permission to be granted so it can get underway with a cinema and restaurant development at Chester Broughton Retail Park.

It added: “We have highlighted for some time the potential investment opportunities we expected to emerge as the property market restructured in the aftermath of the credit crunch.  We are now seeing a greater flow of attractive investment opportunities where we believe our property and financing skills will enable us to generate superior returns for our shareholders.”
 
British Land said that at the end of 2012 it had group cash and unutilised bank facilities of £1.6bn and a loan-to-value (LTV) rate of 46.1%.