RETAIL DEMAND HANDFORTH DEAN HANDFORTH CHESHIRE - Programme Officers
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
HANDFORTH DEAN
HANDFORTH
CHESHIRE
RETAIL
DEMAND
PROOF OF EVIDENCE
BY
M PUDNEY BSc (Hons) FRICS
PUDNEY SHUTTLEWORTH
31 PARK SQUARE WEST
LEEDS LS1 2PF
PINS REFS: APP/R0660/V/17/3179605, 31796709, 3179610 AND
APP/R0660/W/16/3155191
19 DECEMBER 2017
Pudney Shuttleworth Limited. Registered in England and Wales. Company Number: 5001157
31 Park Square West, Leeds, LS1 2PF
Tel: 0113 2031130 www.pudneyshuttleworth.co.ukContents
1.0 Qualifications ..................................................................................................................................... 3
2.0 The Appointment ................................................................................................................................ 6
3.0 Handforth Dean and the Immediate Locality........................................................................................ 9
4.0 The Proposals ................................................................................................................................... 13
5.0 Stockport & Macclesfield .................................................................................................................. 25
6.0 Retailer Demand ............................................................................................................................... 38
7.0 Summary and Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 46
8.0 Declaration ....................................................................................................................................... 49
iAppendices
MP1 PLAN SHOWING THE PROPOSED CPG SCHEME, HANDFORTH
DEAN (NJL PLAN 4)
MP2 PLAN SHOWING THE PROPOSED ORBIT SCHEME, HANDFORTH
DEAN (NJL PLAN 3)
MP3 NEXT, HANDFORTH DEAN INVESTMENT PARTICULARS
MP4 EXAMPLE SHOPPING PARK TENANT LINE UPS AND LAYOUT
PLANS
4.1a and 4.1b – Manchester Fort Shopping Park, Manchester
4.2a and 4.2b – Birstall Shopping Park, Leeds
4.3a and 4.3b – Broughton Shopping Park, Chester
4.4a and 4.4b – Silverlink Shopping Park, North Shields
4.5a and 4.5b – Arnison Shopping Park, Durham
4.6a and 4.6b – New Mersey Shopping Park, Speke, Liverpool
4.7a and 4.7b – Middlebrook Retail and Leisure Park, Horwich, Bolton
MP5 RUSHDEN LAKES TENANT LINE UP AND LAYOUT
MP6 EXAMPLE BULKY/DISCOUNT RETAIL PARKS AND PLANS
6.1a and 6.1b – Dragonville Retail Park, Durham
6.2 – Parkway Central Retail Park, Sheffield
6.3a and 6.3b – St Andrew’s Retail Park, Hull
6.4 Huddersfield Retail Park, Hull
6.5 Kingsway Retail Park, Rochdale
6.6 Brookway Retail Park, Wythenshawe
6.7a and 6.7b – Hylton Riverside Retail Park, Sunderland
6.8a and 6.8b – Lancaster City Retail Park, Morecambe
6.9 Darlington Retail Park, Darlington
6.10a and 6.10b – Danum Retail Park, Doncaster
6.11a and 6.11b – Keighley Retail Park, Keighley
1MP7 PEEL CENTRE, STOCKPORT – TOYS R’ US RECONFIGURATION
PLAN
MP8 NATIONAL GRID SITE, STOCKPORT – LAYOUT OPTIONS
MP9 MERSEYWAY SHOPPING CENTRE, STOCKPORT – LAYOUT
MP10 GROSVENOR SHOPPING CENTRE, MACCLESFIELD – LAYOUT
PLAN
MP11 RETAILER DEMAND ANALYSIS
MP12 ESKMUIR LETTER OF REPRESENTATION
21.0 Qualifications
1.1 My name is Michael Pudney and I hold a degree of Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Urban
Estate Surveying.
1.2 I am a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and I am a Director of
Pudney Shuttleworth, a firm of Chartered Surveyors specialising in the retail and leisure
sectors of the commercial property market.
1.3 I have over 35 years’ experience in the commercial property market with particular
emphasis on the retail warehouse and leisure property sectors. During this time, I spent
over 16 years with St Quintin, Chartered Surveyors where I was a Partner and Head of
the Retail & Leisure Department. Prior to setting up Pudney Shuttleworth over 13 years
ago, I spent over 5 years with DTZ Debenham Tie Leung in their Leeds office, where I
was a Director, Head of Retail & Leisure for the Northern Region and UK Head of
Retail Warehousing.
1.4 I have acted on behalf of many retailers, developers and landlords throughout the whole
of the UK with particular emphasis on the North East and North West of England.
1.5 Amongst my clients, I have at some stage acted in a retained capacity on behalf of the
following retailers:
i. Miller Brothers (Electrical) Limited – Whilst at St Quintin, DTZ and Pudney
Shuttleworth, I acted for over 20 years for Miller Brothers (Electrical) Ltd
in a retained capacity, in the acquisition of out of town retail warehouse units
throughout the United Kingdom. During that time, I acquired over 30 retail
units and also undertook their disposals, asset management and all their
professional work, including rent reviews, lease renewals and sale &
leasebacks.
ii. Magnet Group - Whilst at DTZ Debenham Tie Yeung, I acted as National
Coordinator and advisor to Magnet Group, (the multiple kitchens retailer),
on the whole of their UK portfolio of 250 stores. This involved agency
3and asset management of their entire portfolio, made up largely of retail
warehouse units.
iii. John Peters Furnishings – Whilst at St Quintin, DTZ and Pudney
Shuttleworth, I acted in a retained capacity for John Peters (Furnishings)
Ltd for more than 20 years, in the acquisition of all their retail warehouse
units throughout the northern region. I also undertook all their disposal and
asset management as well as professional work, including rent reviews,
lease renewals and sale & leasebacks.
iv. Empire Direct/Power EC – Whilst at Pudney Shuttleworth I acted in a
retained capacity for Empire Direct (more latterly Power EC), a multiple
electrical retailer, in all their property matters, including acquisitions,
disposals, rent reviews and lease renewals throughout the UK.
v. Brantano (UK) Ltd – I was instructed by national out of town footwear
retailer, Brantano (UK) Ltd to dispose of their surplus retail stores on retail
warehouse parks throughout the whole of the UK.
vi. Topps Tiles – I am currently retained by national tile retailer, Topps Tiles,
to acquire retail warehouse units across the whole of the northern UK.
1.6 I have also acted on behalf of a number of other major non-food and food retailers in
an agency and professional capacity, including; B&Q, Asda, Tesco, J D Sports and Pets
at Home.
1.7 I also act on behalf of landlord clients in the letting and asset management of their retail
warehouse and leisure parks throughout the UK. Recent retail transactions have
involved the letting, sales or re-gears (changing lease terms) to Aldi, Sainsbury’s,
Marks & Spencer Simply Foods, Poundworld, TK Maxx, B & M Stores, Smyths Toys,
Dreams, Floors 4 You, Iceland, Halfords, Maplin and Quality Save. Recent leisure
transactions have involved transactions with Lifestyle Health & Fitness, Mitchells &
Butlers (Harvester public house), Nando’s, JD Gyms, The Gym Group, Frankie &
Benny’s and Chiquito’s restaurants.
41.8 I also act on behalf of developer clients seeking to develop retail and/or leisure parks,
mostly throughout the northern region of the UK. This has involved me speaking to the
food and non-food retail and leisure operators on a daily basis.
1.9 I am an active member of Accessible Retail (AR), an organisation set up to build a
working relationship with Parliament and Government, and to increase awareness of
the economic, competitive and social benefits, which the retail warehouse and leisure
sectors provide. Consisting of retail and leisure operators, developers, landlords and
advisors, the total membership of AR is around 1,400 industry professionals.
52.0 The Appointment
2.1 I have been appointed by Peel Land and Property Investments plc to provide
retail market evidence for two proposed retail schemes at Handforth Dean,
Cheshire and how they may function on an individual and cumulative basis in
retail market terms.
2.2 At the same time I have been asked to assess the likely level of retailer demand for these
proposed schemes and the consequent likely impact on retail demand for nearby town
centres.
2.3 In order to undertake this, I have firstly considered the nature of the proposed
retail schemes; then considered comparable scale schemes. I have then undertaken
market research into current retailer demand for these schemes, Stockport and
Macclesfield and assessed the degree of overlap.
2.4 This then has allowed me to consider the degree of risk of impact on the retail
market from the both of these schemes in relation to Stockport and Macclesfield.
The Schemes
2.5 There are two proposed schemes at Handforth Dean. The largest is being promoted by
CPG and is for around 15,315 sq m (circa 165,000 sq ft) of ground floor retail and
restaurant space, with additional significant floor space for mezzanine floors, making
the total space in the order of 25,350 sq m (273,000 sq ft). This scheme is split across
three separate planning applications, all of which have been ‘called in’ and are being
considered at this co-joined Inquiry (under references APP/R0660/V/17/3179609,
APP/R0660/V/17/3179605 and APP/R0660/V/17/3179610). I have attached the CPG
layout at MP1.
2.6 The proposed scheme being promoted by Orbit is for around 6,035 sq m (circa 65,000
sq ft) of ground floor retail and restaurant space, with no additional floor space at
mezzanine floor level. This scheme is the subject of a single application/appeal
(considered at this Inquiry under reference APP/R0660/W/16/3155191). I have attached
the proposed layout at MP2.
62.7 This means that the two proposed schemes combined will (if consented) provide some
21,350 sq m (230,000 sq ft) of ground floor retail space (31,385 sq m / 337,825 sq ft if
mezzanine floors are included). This is in addition to the already trading and established
retail provision on the adjacent site at Handforth Dean, where you find Marks &
Spencer, Tesco Extra, Outfit, Boots and Next Home & Garden, which provide around
35,992 sq m (387,500 sq ft) of retail space in total.
2.8 This means that the two proposed schemes would result in this location providing in
total, around 67,300 sq m (724,500 sq ft) of essentially co-located retail space, which
is a scale of sub-regional significance. To put this in context I have analysed similar
schemes and their sizes further in this Proof.
2.9 Furthermore, Handforth Dean is located almost adjacent to Stanley Green Retail Park
(comprising around 10,994 sq m / 118,500 sq ft) of retail warehouse space and it is also
around 5 minutes’ drive time from a John Lewis department store (9,703 sq m / 104,500
sq ft) and a Sainsbury’s food store (6,944 sq m / 75,000 sq ft) in an out of town location
at nearby Cheadle Royal.
2.10 If the CPG and Orbit sites at Handforth Dean were to proceed, this would mean that
this 3 mile length of the A34 would end up providing around 94,941 sq m / 1,022,000
sq ft of retail space, and making it a regional shopping destination, linked by short car
journeys. For comparison purposes, again I have considered various comparable
shopping parks and their scale later in this Proof.
2.11 The Handforth Dean area already has noticeable overlapping catchment areas with
nearby Stockport and Macclesfield. This is evidenced through the analysis in Mr Lee’s
Proof (Section 5 / NJL PLANS 5-8).
2.12 The extent of overlap will increase significantly when the SEMMMS A6 MARR opens
in Spring 2018. Again, this is addressed within Mr Lee’s Proof (Section 5 / NJL PLAN
8).
2.13 I therefore intend to comment on the likely impact that the CPG and Orbit schemes
could have on the existing and proposed retail provision in these nearby centres taking
account of recent developments, committed schemes and the occupier profile of each
centre.
72.14 In the first instance, I have provided background context to the evolution of the
Handforth Dean area; a more detailed analysis of the proposed CPG and Orbit schemes,
and contextual analysis of shopping park provision elsewhere. This is covered in the
next section.
83.0 Handforth Dean and the Immediate Locality
3.1 Before turning my attention to the details of the proposed CPG and Orbit schemes at
Handforth Dean, I believe it is worth commenting on the existing retail provision in the
vicinity (NJL PLAN 1).
Evolution of the existing retail provision at Handforth Dean/Stanley
Green/Cheadle Royal
Handforth Dean
3.2 Taking advantage of the A34 Wilmslow by-pass, being only 5 miles from the major
conurbation of Stockport and within easy reach of the wealthy residential areas of
Cheadle Hulme, Alderley Edge, Bramhall, Wilmslow and Macclesfield, it was not
surprising that when a 40-acre site at Handforth Dean was developed in 1995 for a
major out of town retail scheme, it was a success.
3.3 Early occupiers to the site were Marks & Spencer and Tesco, with Marks & Spencer
opening one of their largest flagship stores in the UK, (now totalling some 13,300 sq m
/ 143,000 sq ft). Tesco on the other hand soon realised that their store was undersized
and in 2007 added a second floor, making their store around 6,500 sq m / 70,000 sq ft.
3.4 Soon afterwards, an additional retail unit (totalling some 3,250 sq m / 35,000 sq ft) was
built. Adverse economic circumstances led to company casualties with firstly Allders
ceasing trading, followed by their replacement, BHS, leading to the unit being modified
through sub-division. It is now let to Boots and The Outfit.
3.5 Since then, there has been another addition to Handforth Dean. Next, who until recently
had been trading from the nearby Stanley Green Retail Park, relocated in 2016 into a
new 6,672 sq m / 71,819 sq ft store at Handforth Dean (of which 2,492 sq m / 26,846
sq ft is at ground floor trading level and 2,158 sq m / 23,229 sq ft is at first floor trading
level), to trade under their new brand of Next Home & Garden, with the sale of fashion,
furniture, homewares and garden products. This was developed as part of the wider
CPG proposal but undertaken early as Next had earlier secured a planning consent on
the site but without land control.
93.6 The garden centre area is now part of the proposals by CPG for an extension to provide
a retail unit totalling 1,160 sq.m (12,500 sq.ft) of ground floor space with the same at
mezzanine floor (1,160 sq m / 12,500 sq ft), which is also the subject of this Inquiry.
3.7 With a tenant line up as strong as this: I believe that Handforth Dean is now recognised
as a major out of centre shopping destination by retailers, providing in total around
29,700 sq m / 320,000 sq ft of retail space. I refer back to my comments regarding the
scale, location and occupiers of the area in section 2 to justify my position.
3.8 In addition, when the Next unit was marketed as a retail investment, (see MP3 for a
copy of the particulars), it was seen as having regional scale significance and noted the
very same level of retail provision that I have set out in my section 2.
Stanley Green Retail Park
3.9 Positioned 2-3 minutes’ drive from Handforth Dean and on a major junction of the A34
and A555, Stanley Green Retail Park also serves the same catchment population as
Handforth Dean.
3.10 Opened in 1991, it originally catered for the bulky goods retail market, with early retail
occupiers including B & Q (DIY), Comet (Electrical), Miller Brothers (Electrical) and
Halfords (car accessories). Since then, and partly as a result of company casualties (e.g.
Comet and Miller Brothers), the retail park has changed. Some of the bulky goods
retailers have been replaced with more aspiring retailers such as TK Maxx (fashion),
Homesense (furnishings and home goods), Costa Coffee (coffee) and Furniture Village
(furniture).
3.11 Benefitting from an Open A1 Non-Food retail planning permission, there is every
chance that this retail park will attract more interest from the less bulkier goods retailers
as and when space becomes available. This is because such retailers will be able to pay
higher rents than the bulkier operators. Hence, when there is a lease break arising, the
landlord will seek new letting opportunities at that time. The landlord in this case would
be unencumbered by any planning constraints regarding goods.
3.12 The lease break dates at Stanley Green Retail Park are not until March 2022 (TK Maxx)
and July 2025 (Homesense) but the more important date relates to the B&Q lease expiry
10in October 2022. There is a real prospect of B & Q closing their store in the future and
relocating to a less expensive location or relying on an existing unit elsewhere in the
locality, thereby freeing up around 4,100 sq m / 44,000 sq ft of space on the retail park.
Examples within the northern region where this has happened recently include:
Station Road, Ellesmere Port – now B & M (April 2017);
Teesbay Retail Park, Hartlepool – now B & M (April 2017);
Holyoake Avenue, Blackpool – now Poundstretcher & Pet Hut (February 2017);
Station Road, South Shields – now Home Bargains (September 2017).
3.13 The most likely scenario would therefore be for more traditional town centre type
retailers (fashion/sports etc) to take up this space.
3.14 Totalling around 10,994 sq m / 118,000 sq ft, this retail park provides an additional
retail attraction in the Handforth Dean area. Given the complementary nature of the
occupiers in both locations, I would fully expect shoppers to use both locations either
on solo trips or on linked trips, not in a competing manner on an “either-or” basis.
John Lewis & Sainsbury’s, Wilmslow Road, Cheadle Royal
3.15 Developed around the same time as Marks & Spencer and Tesco at Handforth Dean,
this major out of town retail scheme (John Lewis and Sainsbury’s) was developed to
serve and attract a much wider catchment population that would also incorporate both
Handforth Dean and Stanley Green Retail Park and beyond.
3.16 Located immediately off the A34 at Cheadle Royal, with easy access to the A555 and
other trunk roads, this out of town retail development is easily reached by car from
Stockport and the affluent suburbs of south Manchester, such as Hale, Altrincham,
Bramhall, Cheadle, and then beyond to Wilmslow, Poynton, and Macclesfield.
3.17 Developed as a John Lewis department store of 18,600 sq m (200,000 sq ft) and a 6,800
sq m /73,400 sq ft Sainsbury’s food store, it provides a major retail destination for all
shopping needs, both food and non-food.
113.18 Whilst there would be some element of competition between the dual location of John
Lewis/Sainsbury and M&S/Tesco, it is my view that there is also some degree of
complementarity particularly regarding John Lewis and M&S.
3.19 Based on the existing retail provision at Handforth Dean, Stanley Green Retail Park and
the John Lewis and Sainsbury’s, there is a current retail provision of around 63,500 sq
m / 683,500 sq ft, made up of major named retailers including; Marks & Spencer, Next,
John Lewis, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, The Outfit, Boots, TK Maxx , Homesense, Furniture
Village and B & Q.
3.20 With this amount of existing retail provision in and around this area of south
Manchester, and with a wide catchment area, including the nearby towns of Stockport
and Macclesfield, as demonstrated in Mr Lee’s Proof (Section 5 and NJL PLAN 1), I
would expect in retail market terms that there would be a very strong attraction to this
location by shoppers to any wider retail proposition. Hence, there would be a
commensurate strong demand from retailers to locate here. I assess this further below.
124.0 The Proposals
4.1 I will be addressing Stockport and Macclesfield later in my Proof. However, to
understand the likely competition for retail occupier demand, I need to go into
detail about the two proposed retail schemes at Handforth Dean, being promoted by
CPG and Orbit.
CPG site proposal
4.2 The site of the CPG scheme is located immediately adjacent to the A34 trunk
road. Positioned adjacent to Next Home & Garden, it is designed as a natural
extension to the current retail provision at Handforth Dean, I have included the
proposed layout plan at MP1 (NJL PLAN 4).
4.3 Totalling some 25,350 sq m (275,000 sq ft) of retail and restaurant floor space
(including mezzanine floors), it is intended to create 14 retail units in unit sizes
between 850 sq m (9,150 sq ft) and 5,644 sq m (60,750 sq ft), three drive thru’
restaurants (in unit sizes between 198 sq m (2,130 sq ft) and 541 sq m (5,823 sq ft) and
four stand-alone restaurants (in unit sizes ranging from 199 sq m (2,142 sq ft) to 394 sq
m (4,240 sq ft). The proposals in planning terms bring forward siting and layout as
detailed matters, but are proposed to be open A1 non-food retail with no goods
restrictions, no sub-division restrictions, no minimum sizing and no mezzanine
restrictions.
4.4 Given the nature of the proposed scheme (in terms of layout, unit sizes, number of
proposed food outlets and restaurants etc) and its position adjacent to the existing retail
provision at Handforth Dean, I would expect the CPG scheme to be targeting retailers
normally associated with a ‘shopping park’.
4.5 This means that the type of retailer targeted to occupy space on this park would in the
main be, branded, national multiples, often seen in shopping centres, high streets and
major retail warehouse parks. The retail uses would include fashion (clothing and
footwear), variety stores, department stores, sports goods and sports fashion, toiletries
and cosmetics, outdoor/leisure clothing and equipment, toys and games, hobbies,
children’s wear and accessories and gifts. In some cases they can attract quality
13furniture and furnishings retailers, also associated with the more traditional retail
warehouse park.
4.6 Where shopping parks vary from the more traditional retail warehouse parks is
generally the size and position of the park, the tenant line up and the level of
rents paid.
4.7 Shopping parks tend to be located adjacent to a motorway or a major road network so
as to attract shoppers from a wide, high car ownership catchment area. Being larger
in overall size than a traditional retail warehouse park, they provide a large number of
individual units in varying sizes (from as small as 140 sq m (1,500 sq ft) to more
than 5,574 sq m (60,000sq ft). Such units are typically tenanted by branded multiple
retailers (often associated with the high street and shopping centres) and commanding
a significantly higher rental.
4.8 Typically, a northern based shopping park can range in overall size from around
13,900 sq m to 46,450 sq m (150,000 sq ft to 500,000 sq ft) with rents ranging
from around £2.80 per sq m to £6.00 per sq m (£30.00 per ft to £65.00 per sq ft).
4.9 Landlords for shopping parks will generally seek to achieve a tenant mix which
provides variety, from tenants who can afford to pay comparatively higher rents and
service charges than the traditional retail warehouse park. In return, the retail occupiers
will expect to generate higher turnover levels from the large footfall generated from
being on a much larger, dominant retail park.
4.10 Whilst drive thru’ and stand-alone restaurants are common on both retail and
shopping parks, they would undoubtedly be attracted here, by the size of the
scheme, expected tenant line-up (branded multiple retailers), the ease of access
from the A34 and wider network and the existing retail provision at Handforth
Dean. The restaurants will offer additional interest to a scheme and increase
dwell times on the park and thereby seek to increase expenditure in the retail
units on each visit, In preference to competing retail locations, including town
centres.
14Example Shopping Park Locations and Tenant Line Ups
4.11 Below are a few examples of shopping parks across the northern region. I have
included at MP4 examples of shopping park tenant line ups and layout plans, with a
location plan and layout. I would note that most of these are larger than the CPG
proposals, but my analysis above demonstrates that the resultant position with the CPG
proposals coming forward would be a composite retail provision (adding in Next,
Tesco, M&S) that is of direct comparison.
4.12 Whilst these are good examples of shopping parks, there is a similarity and
overlap with retail occupiers on some of the larger retail warehouse parks and
town centres. I have placed (i) an asterisk against those retailers located at the
Peel Centre, Stockport; and (ii) underlined those retailers who are present in
Stockport Town Centre and/or Macclesfield Town Centres as well. This
demonstrates the significant overlap that occurs between such types of retail
provision, which could have an adverse effect on the future well-being of the
Peel Centre and the town centre, for reasons I will outline in detail shortly (an
issue addressed further by Mr Lee).
Town/Name Overall Size Main Occupiers Max
(sq m/sq ft) Rent
£/sq m
£/ sq ft
Manchester – 30,310 sq m H & M*, Outfit, Next*, £3.48
Manchester (326,250 sq ft) Game Poundworld, Sports / sq m
Fort Direct, Mothercare World,
Shopping Park Boots*, Argos*, New (£37.50
Look*, Trespass T K /sq ft)
Maxx*, Asda Living, EE
M & S Simply Foods, O2,
Superdrug, Nike, Clarks,
Thomas Cook, Specsavers,
Card Factory, Thomson
Travel, Costa Coffee,
15Carphone Warehouse,
Claire’s Accessories
(plus, restaurants)
Leeds – 19,305 sq m Boots*, River Island, £6.04
Birstall (207,808 sq ft) Wilko*, Argos*, M & S / sq m
Shopping Simply Foods,
Park Burton/Dorothy Perkins/ (£65.00
Evans, Mamas & Papas, /sq ft)
Next*, T K Maxx*, DFS*,
Wren Living, Toys R Us*,
W H Smith, Carphone
Warehouse, Thomson
Travel (plus, restaurants
nearby)
Chester – 32,516 sq m Tesco Extra, Sports Direct, £4.65
Broughton (350,500 sq ft) Monsoon, River Island, / sq m
Shopping Park New Look*, Next*,
Primark, Homesense, Asda (£50.00
Living, Outfit, M & S /sq ft)
Simply Foods, Toys R Us*,
JD Sports, Nike
W H Smith, Boots*, Clarks,
Poundworld, Clinton Cards,
Claire’s Accessories, O2,
Card Factory, Spec Savers,
Body Shop, EE, Thomson’s
Travel, Costa Coffee,
(plus, restaurants)
North Shields – 20,217 sq m M & S Simply Foods, £4.74
Silverlink (217,610 sq ft) Boots* H & M*, Outfit, / sq m
Shopping Wilko*, ScS*, Mothercare,
Park Argos*, Sports Direct, New (£51.00
Look*, River Island, J D /sq ft)
16Sports, Halfords, Currys/PC
World*, Harveys,
Poundworld
(plus, restaurants)
Durham – 31,122 sq m Sainsbury’s, Laura Ashley, £3.21
Arnison (335,000 sq ft) Asda Living, Smyths Toys / sq m
Shopping Marks & Spencer, Boots*,
Park New Look*, Outfit, Wilko*, (£34.50
River Island, Next*, Nike, /sq ft)
Superdrug, Lakeland,
Mountain Warehouse, Pets
At Home, EE, Card Factory,
Maplin, The Works, Costa
Coffee (plus, restaurants)
Liverpool – 44,897 sq m Currys/PC World*, B & Q, £5.11 /
New Mersey (483,268 sq ft) River Island, New Look*, sq m
Shopping Park, Sports Direct, Marks &
Speke Spencer, Next*, JD Sports, £55.00
WH Smith, H & M*, / sq ft
Boots*, Sofology, Argos*,
ScS*,Marks & Spencer
Simply Foods, DFS*,
Clarks, Harveys/Bensons*,
Mamas & Papas, Smyths
Toys, Outfit, Oak
Furnitureland, Pets at
Home, Thomson
Travel, Halfords,
Bolton – 52,659 sq m Next*, Marks & Spencer, £4.54 /
Middlebrook (566,818 sq Currys/PC World*, sq m
Retail & ft) excluding Sofology, Oak
Leisure Park, 7,418 sq m Furnitureland, Dreams, £48.82
Horwich (79,843 sq ft) Furniture Village, DFS*, / sq ft
17of cinema and Wilko*, Smyths Toys, Pets
10 pin at Home, ScS*, TK Maxx*,
bowling Harveys/Bensons*, JD
Sports, Sports Direct,
Argos*, River Island,
Poundland, Laura Ashley,
Halfords, Dreams, EE,
Costa
Coffee, Boots*,
Carphone Warehouse,
Thomson Travel, Sports
Direct, Poundworld,
Specsavers, JD Sports,
Poundland, O2, Clarks
4.13 A very recent example of a shopping park in another area of the UK, is Rushden
Lakes Shopping Park at Rushden near Northampton. Totalling around 35,300 sq m
(380,000 sq ft). It opened in 2017 attracting many branded multiple retailers to a variety
of unit sizes ranging from as small as 140 sq m (1,500 sq ft) to 3,995 sq m (43,000
sq ft).
4.14 I have appended at MP5 a layout of Rushden Lakes. Below is a brief overview of
Rushden Lakes Shopping Park. I have placed an asterisk against those retailers located
at the Peel Centre, Stockport; and underlined those retailers who are present in
Stockport Town Centre and/or Macclesfield Town Centres as well.
Town/Name Overall Size Main Occupiers Max
(sq m/sq ft) Rent
£/sq m
£/ sq ft
Rushden, 35,300 sq m House of Fraser, Marks & £4.18
Northampton – (380,000 sq ft) Spencer, Primark, Boots*, / sq m
H & M*, River Island, New
18Rushden Lakes Look*, JD Sports, Next, (£45.00
Shopping Park Mountain Warehouse, /sq ft)
Hobbs, Warehouse, Jigsaw,
White Stuff, Fat Face,
Clarks, Paperchase,
Accessorize, Holland &
Barratt, Phase Eight, Moss
Bros (plus, restaurants)
4.15 It also should be noted that there are some cases where rental levels have exceeded
those set out above, but these are an exception and relate to major regional shopping
centres, such as Fosse Park, Leicester or Glasgow Fort, Glasgow, where rents around
£9.29 per sq m (£100 per sq ft) have been achieved.
4.16 Finally, whilst shopping parks are characterised by the high rental levels when
compared to other types of retail warehouse parks, they are not restricted to only
high street branded occupiers. They generally offer a wide range of ‘blends’ of
retailers, which can include some discounters such as Poundworld, Wilko or
Poundland as well as some medium or high-end retailers, such as Sofology,
Furniture Village, DFS, Smyths Toys or Currys/PC World. An anchor store is
also important and this can be a traditional type department store, such as House of
Fraser or Debenhams, but it can also be the likes of Primark and Marks and
Spencer.
Orbit site proposal
4.17 The site earmarked for the Orbit scheme is located to the rear of the proposed
CPG scheme. It is also designed to be a continuation of the existing Handforth Dean
shopping provision and positioned adjacent to the Next unit.
4.18 Totalling around 6,035 sq m (64,960 sq ft) of ground floor space, it is to be
arranged in 5 retail units (in unit sizes from 744 sq m (8,000 sq ft) to 2,240 sq m (24,111
sq ft) together with 2 smaller units (of between 114 sq m (1,227 sq ft) and 315 sq m
19(3,391 sq ft) with uses envisaged as small retail. restaurant or fast food takeaway. I have
included the layout at MP2.
4.19 Three of the five larger retail units are proposed as being 744 sq m (8,000 sq ft) and
Orbit are seeking an Open A1 non-food retail use on all the proposed retail
units and no mezzanine floors are proposed.
4.20 Given the nature of the scheme, in terms of layout, unit sizes, position of the
scheme, lack of mezzanine floors and size of restaurants/food takeaway units, this
would appear to be a scheme for a different market to the CPG scheme.
4.21 However, if I consider the Orbit scheme on a solus basis first, and assume CPG
does not happen, then I would expect that Orbit would have a wider range of
possible tenants to consider. Notwithstanding this, I would expect this scheme to be
less “premium” if built on its own. It would rely significantly on the Next / M&S /
Tesco attraction nearby; would have a less prominent location and hence a lower
rental proposition.
4.22 This would also make sense, given the relatively small size of scheme, and the
secondary location with no direct access or visibility from the A34.
4.23 Partially dictated by the intended lack of food retail use and not proposing mezzanine
floors, I would envisage this scheme to be targeted towards the more rent sensitive,
bulkier goods and/or discount retail occupier.
4.24 Typically, a discount retail park is anchored by a discount food store (Aldi or
Lidl) and/or a discount variety store (B & M, Home Bargains etc), and would
expect to attract other national discount retailers involved in the sale of discount
clothing, footwear, sports goods, furniture etc along with eat-in or takeaway fast
food, sandwiches, coffee outlets.
4.25 A more traditional bulky goods retail park would include uses such as DIY,
furniture, floor coverings, electrical, motor accessories, pets and pet accessories and
soft furnishings. However, with a changing market over the last few years, the more
open A1 retail parks have attracted attention from some of the discount retailers, so that
20in some instances both bulky goods retailers and discounters trade from the same
scheme.
4.26 The rents on these types of schemes would be significantly lower than the rents
expected on a shopping park, due to the bulky or discount nature of the retailer,
who would be rent sensitive, have lower sales margins and their customer base
would be more localised.
4.27 Typically, a northern based out of town bulky and/or discount retail park can
range in size from around 6,500 sq m to slightly over 13,935 sq m (70,000 sq ft to
slightly over 150,000 sq ft) with rents ranging from around £1.11 per sq m to
£1.86 per sq m (£12.00 per ft to £20.00 per sq ft).
4.28 I have set out a schedule in MP6 of a few examples of discount retail parks and
bulky retail parks (incorporating discount retailers) across the northern region. The
tenant line up is provided for each, with layouts provided where these have been
located.
4.29 I have set out below the tenant line up for each one and placed an asterisk beside
each tenant that is located at the Peel Centre, Stockport and underlined those tenants
also found in Stockport or Macclesfield Town Centres.
Town/Name Overall Size Main Occupiers Rent
(sq m/sq ft) £/sq m
£/ sq ft
Durham – 9,290 sq m Aldi, Matalan*, Iceland, £1.86
Dragonville (100,000 sq ft) Home Bargains*, Shoe / sq m
Retail Zone, Poundworld,
Park T K Maxx*, Card (£20.00
Factory, Greggs, /sq ft)
Chesney’s Coffee
Sheffield – 9,783 sq m Home Bargains*, £1.49
Parkway Central (105,300 sq ft) Iceland, Matalan*, / sq m
Retail Park Poundworld, Gala Bingo,
Subway, Card Factory, (£16.00
21Greggs, Burger King /sq ft)
Hull – 6,830 sq m Wilko*, Poundland, £1.11
St Andrews (73,550 sq ft) Iceland, Store Twenty / sq m
Retail One, B & M, Select
Park Fashion, Card Factory, (£12.00
Poundstretcher, Jack /sq ft)
Fulton, Barnado’s
Huddersfield – 9,009 sq m Aldi, Dunelm Mill*, £1.77
Huddersfield (96,977 sq ft) B & M, Poundstretcher, / sq m
Retail Park Wynsors Shoes,
Matalan* (£19.00
/sq ft)
Rochdale – 8,629 sq m Asda (small food store), £1.63
Kingsway Retail (92,878 sq ft) The Range, Bargain / sq m
Park Buys, Iceland, Sports
Direct, Pets at Home, (£17.50
McDonalds /sq ft
Wythenshawe – 7,897 sq m Aldi, B & M, Matalan*, £1.86
Brookway Retail (85,000 sq ft) Pets at Home, Wickes / sq m
Park
(£20.00
/sq ft)
Sunderland – 11,326 sq m Aldi, Matalan*, £1.70
Hylton Riverside (121,900 sq ft) Peacocks, B & M, / sq m
Retail Park Poundworld, Argos*,
Poundstretcher, Pets at (£18.50
Home /sq ft
Morecambe – 10,859 sq m Dunelm*, Sports Direct, £1.51
Lancaster City (116,883 sq ft) Pets at Home, / sq m
Retail Park Carpetright,
Harveys/Bensons*, (£16.27
Matalan*, Wickes /sq ft
Darlington– 14,312 sq m DFS*, ScS*, Carpetright, £1.70
22Darlington (154,056 sq ft) Home Bargains*, / sq m
Retail Park Currys/PC World*,
The Range, Furniture (£18.50
Village, Harveys*, Pets /sq ft
at
Home, TK Maxx*,
Costa*, KFC*
Doncaster – 13,885 sq m Currys/PC World*, £1.78
Danum Retail (149,453 sq ft) Smyths Toys, Harveys/ / sq m
Park Bensons, Mothercare.
Power EC Electrical, (£19.15
Dreams, Carpetright, /sq ft
Sofology, B & M,
American Golf
Keighley – 6,238 sq m Poundstretcher, Halfords, £1.49
Keighley (67,150 sq ft) Pets at Home, TK / sq m
Retail Park Maxx*,
Currys/PC World*, The (£16.00
Bed Shop, Bensons*, /sq ft
Jollyes, Greggs, KFC*
4.30 If the proposed CPG and Orbit schemes were to progress together, neither would
necessarily conflict directly with each other. They will both compete for some of the
mid-market tenants, but those more likely to align with the premium end will locate on
the CPG scheme, and those more likely to align with more discount/ bulky goods will
locate on the Orbit scheme (all other variables being equal).
4.31 This would thus lead to an even greater concern over the competition for tenants that
do, or could locate in Stockport (including the Peel Centre) and Macclesfield Town
Centres. In essence, the combination of both schemes would most likely exhaust most
of the likely tenant targets of the town centres and/or seek to draw more tenants who
already exist in each centre, thereby further increasing vacancies in the town centres.
234.32 In addition, the critical mass of both schemes would compete even more effectively
with other existing out of centre locations. Where these schemes then potentially lose
tenants and don’t have any goods controls (such as Stanley Green) then even more open
A1 out of centre retail floor space becomes available for tenants to move in to in those
locations, again with a risk of duplicating tenants who would go to, or are already in,
existing centres.
4.33 Combined, the two schemes at Handforth Dean would provide a total of some 31,385
sq m (338,000 sq ft) of retail and restaurant space (including mezzanine floors), which
when added to the current retail provision in the area, (which currently stands at around
63,500 sq m / 683,500 sq ft), would result in Handforth Dean and its immediate area
providing some 94,885 sq m / 1,021,000 sq ft of retail and restaurant space.
4.34 Both schemes will have combined prominence on the main road network with easy
access to the motorway network. They will have dedicated access points, clear branding
and signage, and dedicated, surface level free car parking to users. All of this is very
attractive to potential occupiers, in comparison to existing town centre provision.
4.35 The expected effect of this would be to draw even more people to the area from an even
wider catchment. This is not reflected in the work done by the appellants in their current
individual analysis to date. This is covered further by Mr Lee in his Proof of Evidence
regarding catchment areas and trade draw.
4.36 This wider catchment will be even more obvious and impact will be even greater when
Manchester Airport Relief Road South opens in Spring 2018, when it will provide a
quick and easy link to the catchment population situated between the A6 trunk road and
Manchester Airport/M56 motorway. I have referred already to this matter, (it is covered
further by Mr Lee in his Proof of Evidence).
4.37 The SEMMMS A6 MARR will result in an even wider catchment, overlapping even
more with the catchment of Stockport Town Centre and Macclesfield Town Centre
(NJL PLAN 8), which will mean Handforth Dean will prove even more attractive to
existing and potential tenants. To further understand the wider retail context regarding
Stockport and Macclesfield I have set out the various retail schemes /developments of
note in my next section before analysing retail demand.
245.0 Stockport & Macclesfield
Context – Retail Investment
5.1 The two towns of Stockport and Macclesfield have been selected by me as towns most
worthy of investigation, for the reason that they are both important commercial centres
relative to the south Manchester area. They are likely to be most affected by the CPG
and Orbit proposals if they were to proceed. This is due to each of them having
significant overlapping catchment areas with Handforth Dean (as evidenced by Mr Lee
in his Proof of Evidence).
5.2 Stockport is only around 6 miles from Handforth Dean and Macclesfield is around 9
miles away. Both towns have important existing retail provision, including retail
warehouse parks and town centre shopping centres.
5.3 Retail warehouse parks and shopping centres are assets which require constant
attention. It is rare that a landlord for a retail park or shopping centre can sit back and
do nothing, as the asset is at the mercy of market conditions, tenant demand and the
commercial stability of their occupiers. In addition, the majority of the space is occupied
by way of occupational leases, where lease lengths vary and rents change over time.
5.4 Increasingly there is a much greater market sensitivity with regards to the dynamics of
occupying retail floor space. Leases are now much shorter and/or have more break
options. Retailers are evolving more quickly. New brands emerge and old brands
disappear more quickly, and there is increasing sensitivity to on-line retailing, with
some retailers choosing to be on-line only, and others choosing both channels to reach
their customers.
5.5 When a landlord considers embarking on a major investment so as to improve their
retail asset, they must first establish occupier demand and whether the expected rents
and costs incurred would make it viable.
5.6 However, the decision of the landlord to progress or not, is also affected by current or
potential/anticipated vacancies within their scheme, which can come about as a result
of an occupier ceasing to trade or the lease coming to an end and the tenant choosing
25not to renew. In this instance, the landlord is then faced with a potentially declining
asset value and the need to find new occupiers as soon as possible.
5.7 This scenario occurs in town centres, retail parks and shopping centres up and down
the country on a regular basis. The landlord’s success in taking forward new investment,
through letting or re-letting vacant space, will be influenced heavily by the economic
and market conditions together with retail occupier demand.
5.8 This is now much more sensitive than it ever used to be, for the reasons noted above,
(shorter lease lengths, break options and fast evolving retailers). Hence, as soon as there
is uncertainty about whether retailers may wish to occupy, this can completely
undermine landlord confidence in taking forward new investment. This would of course
be particularly acute where there is the very real threat of a well located, out of centre
proposition that would overlap with catchments and tenant profiles, as demonstrated in
this particular instance with both schemes.
5.9 Occupier demand for a particular retail or shopping centre can change from time to time
(again a product of the market and the retailer’s internal decision processes). However,
the more competition there is from other comparable and competing schemes, the less
likely occupiers will be around to fill the vacant space. In addition, retailers take
comfort from the existence of other retailers (such as significant anchor tenants) and as
such their choice of a suitable location is often influenced by the decisions of others.
5.10 Property, by its very nature, is a ‘lumpy’ investment. The term ‘lumpy’ is used here to
describe a ‘less liquid’ form of asset/investment. The property market is subject to
many physical or timing restrictions leading to complications and significant time
delays. These may include complying with the planning processes, finding suitable
funding, marketing of the asset, dealing with building repairs, renovations and
improvements, land assembly, ground and environmental issues etc. This often means
that decisions taken today can take many months or years thereafter to be implemented.
During this time, both the economic/market conditions and occupier demand may have
changed.
5.11 With this context in mind, it is important to consider the retail provision in Stockport
and Macclesfield and explore where future aspirations or threats could be directly
affected by the CPG and Orbit schemes progressing.
26Stockport
5.12 Stockport is one of the major towns serving the south Manchester area. Located only
some 6 miles from Handforth Dean and linked by a network of major roads, these two
locations have a significant overlap in their catchment areas.
5.13 Stockport has a number of retail warehouse units, arranged as solus sites or as retail
parks. In addition, Stockport has a town centre, providing high street retail, retail park
and solus retail warehousing space, shopping centre and leisure amenities.
5.14 I have set out below the main retail destinations in Stockport and, where necessary, I
have commented on the landlord’s aspirations to improve their assets and how those
opportunities could be affected by Handforth Dean.
The Peel Centre, Great Portwood Street
5.15 The Peel Centre is owned by Peel Holdings and is located within the defined
town centre shopping area. The detail of its location and layout is set out in Mr Lee’s
Proof of Evidence (and NJL PLAN 13).
5.16 Whilst it is a retail warehouse park, the Peel Centre is very much linked with the main
town centre shopping area, but in a unique (or at least unusual) sense. It is one of the
few retail parks of some scale which is directly connected in to a town centre
location. Indeed, it was built specifically to offer a genuine choice of location for larger
floor plate /retail warehouse style floor space instead of being in out of centre locations.
It was a positive attempt by the Council to address the issue of outflow of retail trade
to out of centre locations.
5.17 Built in 7 separate phases (Phase 1 being built in 1987), The Peel Centre now
provides 30,865 sq m of space, made up mostly of retail uses with a small proportion
used for food and beverage (NJL PLAN 13).
5.18 The highest proportion of retail uses are fashion (38.45%) followed by home,
furniture and electrical (31.04%) with the rest being used for convenience,
discount, miscellaneous (Boots, Argos, Toys R Us etc) and food and beverage.
275.19 Retail occupiers include: Home Bargains, Boots, Hobbycraft, H & M, Argos,
New Look, GAP, T K Maxx, Next, Wilko, Toys R Us, Matalan, Curry/PC World,
DFS, Harveys, ScS and Dunelm. Food and beverage occupiers include; Frankie &
Benny’, KFC and Costa.
5.20 The current position at The Peel Centre appears fairly stable, since with the exception
of Unit 11 (next to KFC) it is fully occupied. However, behind the scenes the landlord
is facing a number of threats to their asset, threats from potential store closures
through company failures and lease expiries.
5.21 The weighted average of future lease expiries across the whole of The Peel
Centre is only 5.4 years, which has repercussions in terms of how the landlord will
manage this centre, and the effect on the value of the asset.
5.22 Between now and 2019 some 7,095 sq m (76,365 sq ft) of existing floorspace,
which is 23% of the whole asset, could became vacant as a result of leases due to
expire in this period. These include:
Argos (Unit 1D) - who occupies 929 sq m (10,000 sq ft) at the Peel Centre, had
a lease expiry on 4th August 2017. Whilst they have indicated their intention to
renew their lease, the new lease terms have not as yet been agreed with the
Landlord and as such Argos are ‘holding over’. This leaves Argos in the position
that unless suitable terms can be agreed, they could withdraw and vacate their
unit. Being part of the Sainsbury’s group of companies, there have been many
recent instances where Argos have not renewed their leases, instead choosing
to close stores and take smaller units within existing Sainsbury’s food
stores. There is a Sainsbury’s food store to the North West of The Peel Centre.
Argos also has a store within the Merseyway Shopping Centre. Whilst this
uncertainty remains, there is a threat of a vacancy on the park should Argos not
renew their lease.
Toys R Us (Unit 6) – who currently trade from 4,075 sq m (43,865 sq ft) has a
lease expiry in 2018. Their ideal size of store is now 1,158 sq m (20,000 sq ft),
making their existing store at The Peel Centre, significantly over sized. In
addition, their US parent company has recently filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
and on 4th December 2017, Toys R Us UK announced plans to instigate
28Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA), whereby the company will seek
creditor approval to reposition its real estate portfolio and initially seek to close
at least 26 stores across the UK, deemed to be too big and expensive to run. It
is expected that the company intends to commence store closures in Spring
2018.
With a lease expiry in November 2018 and an oversized unit, it makes the future
prospects for Toys R Us staying on The Peel Centre (or even in the UK) at best
questionable. Either way, the future prospect for Toys R Us remaining on The
Peel Centre (in whole or in part) is very low.
Next (Unit 4B) – who currently trade from 2,090 sq m (22,500 sq ft) have a
lease expiry in 2019. As referenced earlier, they also have a new large store at
Handforth Dean. Whether or not Next decide to renew their lease at The Peel
Centre is currently uncertain and is of significant concern already to the
Landlord. With the new store at Handforth Dean, the potential for Next to take
a view over rationalising its position in Stockport is now heightened and very
real.
H & M (Unit 1B) – who currently trade from 1,675 sq m (18,031 sq ft) have a
lease expiry in 2020. Currently associated with taking space within The
Grosvenor Centre, Macclesfield and at the same time expressing interest in
being represented at the new appeal sites at Handforth Dean, there is a very real
possibility that H & M may not renew their lease and as such lead to a vacancy
at The Peel Centre.
5.23 If one or more of these retailers decide not to renew their lease, the landlord will
need to attract another retailer to occupy that space, so with this in mind, the
landlord has taken the initiative by pursuing two proposals. The first is a potential
solution to the Toys R Us situation and the other is to enhance the attraction of The
Peel Centre. Their proposals are as follows:
Extension and reconfiguration of Unit 6 (Toys R US)
5.24 The landlord has obtained and made a material start on a planning consent to extend
and subdivide the Toys R Us unit. If they are still trading and are interested in
29remaining, Toys R Us would have the opportunity to take a downsized unit by way of
a new lease, and the balance would be subdivided to create a number of smaller units),
including potentially one for food sales. The details of the proposals are set out at MP7
which shows the consented layout and unit sizes.
5.25 As an alternative, and (in particular) assuming that Toys R Us decide not to take a new
lease at all, the landlord has considered the total redevelopment of the Toys R Us unit,
so as to provide a better layout for the park as a whole and a better fit with potential
expansion land to the rear, currently owned by National Grid.
5.26 Faced with a potential large vacancy, if Toys R Us do not renew a lease in 2018 (as
appears likely), the landlord will need occupiers to fill this vacancy. The planning
consent allows for a range of units to come forward and is remarkably similar in scale
and format to the Orbit scheme, being only 642 sq m (7,000 sq.ft) less than the Orbit
scheme in total, with 5 units ranging from 557 sq m (6,000 sq.ft) to 2,323 sq m (25,000
sq.ft).
Planned acquisition and development of National Grid land
5.27 National Grid are landowners of a site to the rear of The Peel Centre. This site is surplus
to National Grid’s operational needs and this has led to Peel making a substantial offer
to purchase the site, based on a retail development of the site.
5.28 Given the landlocked nature of the site and previous discussions Peel have had with
National Grid, Peel is best placed to develop the site, but National Grid’s policy is to
prevent a pre-remediation, off market sale to any party, but they have indicated that the
offer is at the right level, but they prefer to remediate the site before concluding a deal.
5.29 Peel Holdings see this as a realistic development opportunity within a 5 year timescale.
Currently National Grid are undertaking their own site remediation programme.
5.30 The acquisition and development of the National Grid land is still within Peel’s business
plan. They have designed several schemes, which would be both compatible and
complementary to the existing Peel Centre. At this stage they envisage a scheme size
of between 6,500 sq m (70,000 sq ft) and 9,290 sq ft (100,000 sq ft) consisting of
between 4 to 6 units of between 929 sq m (10,000 sq ft) and 2,973 sq m (32,000 sq ft).
30I have included 1 possible layout option at MP8 that have been drawn up for Peel to
consider how they could develop the site in the future. These options are not prescriptive
and can be readily adapted to meet a number of tenant configuration options as required.
5.31 I am informed by Peel Holdings that informal discussions have been held between them
and Stockport Council. Not only is the Council supportive of the redevelopment and
expansion proposals for this site, they have indicated that they may be prepared to take
it forward in their Local Plan process, since the site lies within the town centre shopping
area.
5.32 This site is regarded as a natural extension to The Peel Centre and once developed will
provide additional investment and attraction to Stockport Town Centre. Without retail
occupier interest, Peel would not continue with this planned investment to acquire and
regenerate the site at an early date. Rather the site could remain undeveloped and in
need of regeneration for some time to come.
Manchester Road Retail Park
5.33 Manchester Road Retail Park is located in an out of town location, around 1
mile north of Stockport Town Centre. It is owned by The Brookhouse Group and
comprises around 8,919 sq m (96,000 sq ft) of retail warehousing with tenants
being Asda food store, Wickes, Halfords, Poundstretcher and Greggs.
5.34 Currently the retail park is fully let and stable, with recent re-gearing of leases to Wickes
and Halfords, the current tenant line up is expected to remain the same for the
foreseeable future and hence would not see any real impact from the Handforth Dean
proposals in tenant terms.
5.35 In addition, as the scheme has no opportunity to expand its boundary, it is expected
that it will continue as a retail park serving that part of Stockport in much the same way
as it has in the past. As a result, I would class this scheme as not being likely to evolve
or change in the near term as a result of any proposals at Handforth Dean as there
would not be any tenant changes.
31Others
5.36 Many of the other larger retail warehouse units in Stockport are stand-alone out of town,
solus stores, such Homebase at Bredbury, B & M and Go Outdoors at Cheadle Heath,
B & Q and Decathlon at Heaton Norris and Carpetright at Hazel Grove. Others are
small developments, such as Portwood Court (Carphone Warehouse, Maplin and Pizza
Hut), B & M and Dreams (on Great Portwood Street) and Pets at Home and Office
Outlet on Didsbury Road.
5.37 Whilst all these stores are open and trading at the moment, it is worth mentioning that
the Carpetright unit at Macclesfield Road, Hazel Grove is oversized at 2,973 sq m
(32,000 sq ft) and over 50% of the space is currently available and on the open market.
The subdivided space is being offered as two separate units (873 sq m / 9,397 sq ft and
786 sq m / 8,462 sq ft) with Carpetright remaining in the balance. No occupiers are
currently interested in this vacant space. As above, I don’t envisage any change to
tenants at these units in the short term from the Handforth Dean proposals.
Stockport Town Centre
5.38 Two significant town centre schemes owned by the Council and serving the
local population will require the overall vitality of the town centre to continue, if the
two schemes are to survive in the long term. The two schemes are:
i. Merseyway Shopping Centre – An established shopping centre totalling 2,852
sq m (307,000 sq ft) of retail accommodation, anchored by Primark,
Debenhams, Boots and Marks and Spencer along with national multiples such
as Top Shop, JD Sports, New Look and River Island.
After several years in receivership, the shopping centre was sold to Stockport
Council in April 2016, with the intention of improving the appearance of the
centre and upgrading units to cater for retailer’s current needs. So far these
plans have not been implemented.
At the moment though, Merseyway Shopping Centre has around 14 vacant shop
units (including very temporary short term occupancies). I have enclosed a
layout of the shopping centre at MP9.
32ii. Redrock – Funded in the main by Stockport Council, this new leisure and retail
destination has recently opened (Autumn 2017).
Redrock is positioned on the edge of the prime shopping area, close to
Merseyway Shopping Centre (Plan contained within MP 9). It comprises a 10
screen cinema (pre-let to The Light Cinema) along with 10 additional units,
totalling 3,530 sq m (38,000 sq ft) and made up of unit sizes from around 232
sq m (2,500 sq ft) to 1,672 sq m (18,000 sq ft). It is intended to create
another attraction in Stockport Town Centre and reduce customer leakage to
other nearby centres.
Demand for the cinema and restaurant units has been good, with early lettings
to The Light Cinema, Pizza Express, Zizzi, Mangobean and Gourmet Burger
Kitchen. However, the proposed 3 retail units suffered from poor retailer
demand and these have now been let to The Gym Group (for gym use) and
Loungers (café bar), leaving 3 further restaurant/leisure units remaining vacant.
5.39 It is therefore important that in order for the planned and proposed investments to go
ahead at The Peel Centre, Merseyway Shopping Centre and Redrock, Stockport remains
a place to shop and be entertained. It needs to attract much more inward investment
and much greater retailer interest to further grow as a key town centre.
5.40 My main focus has been on the Peel Centre because there is a stronger
opportunity to provide larger floor space units and a wider mix of warehouse
type floor space to meet tenant needs earlier. This does not however detract from the
importance of the rest of the town centre.
Macclesfield
5.41 Macclesfield is a market town within the county of Cheshire. It lies only around 8 miles
from Handforth Dean, and therefore has an overlapping catchment area with Handforth
Dean.
5.42 Being a market town, its main shopping core, grouped around the Grosvenor Centre (a
town centre covered shopping centre) is of critical importance to its long term future as
a key retail centre. Lyme Green Retail Park and Silk Retail Park also provide retail
warehouse floor space.
33You can also read
