St Johns shopping centre in Liverpool has changed hands in a deal believed to be worth less than £40m – considerably lower than the £76.5m it sold for in 2012. Tony McDonough reports
St Johns shopping centre in Liverpool has changed hands in a deal believed to be worth tens of millions of pounds.
Retail asset manager RivingtonHark has acquired the 540,000 sq ft complex, which is home to 100 retailers and first opened its doors in 1969 from InfraRed Capital Partners. Mid-market investment specialist AnaCap Financial Partners has backed the deal.
The value of the transaction is undisclosed but property news outlet EG quotes sources suggesting the future may be under £40m. This is considerably lower than the £76.5m InfraRed paid previous owner Land Securities for the centre in 2012. InfraRed was looking to sell the asset for as much as £140m in 2015 but was unable to conclude the sale.
InfraRed has invested millions of pounds to upgrade St Johns, which is 97% let. And RivingtonHark has pledged to continue to invest to ensure it meets the “ongoing demands of a leading city-centre shopping centre”.
RivingtonHark executive director Mark Williams said: “We are glad to partner with AnaCap and are looking forward to engage with our tenants, Liverpool City Council and the wider community to continue to invest in the asset and create long term value for all stakeholders.”
Earlier this month LBN reported that footfall at St Johns had plummeted 30% due to disruption caused by work on the £9m upgrade of Lime Street. Their concern has grown with work now having come to a halt due to the collapse of the main contractor.
“After considerable delay to the progress of the Connectivity Scheme, we are disappointed to learn of the continued disruption that will be caused in light of NMCN entering administration,” said Neil Ashcroft, centre manager at St Johns, on October 8.
Sebastien Wigdo, managing director of AnaCap, added: “This acquisition represents an exciting opportunity for AnaCap to invest in a prime and stabilised retail asset in the UK, demonstrating our ability to identify value in a sector which may have been previously overlooked.
“We were particularly attracted to the asset given its high-quality location and strong tenant mix of both local and national retailers, a large number of whom have shown a long-term commitment to the location during COVID.”