95 Wigmore Street
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Partnership produces new benchmark yield in Marylebone
Location guide
We acquired 95 Wigmore Street in 2006, on the inception of the Great Wigmore Partnership (GWP). This entity represented our joint venture with Aberdeen Asset Management to unlock the significant development value of this West End site.
95 Wigmore Street occupies a site bounded by Wigmore Street to the north, Duke Street to the west, James Street to the east and Picton Place to the south. The redevelopment transformed an entire West End block to create new offices, shops and homes. Completed in 2013 the new scheme, totalling 112,700 sq ft, replaced a mixture of inefficient and unsustainable 1960s and 1970s office buildings.
Drawing from the rhythm and proportion of the district’s original Georgian townhouses as well as the grander Edwardian store buildings nearby, the building incorporates 82,300 sq ft of offices, 17,900 sq ft of retail space in seven units and 12,500 sq ft of residential accommodation.
The property was sold in April 2015 for £222.4 million, reflecting a new benchmark yield of 3.4% and a capital value of £2,209 per sq ft.
West End - North
Location
'Excellent' rated
BREEAM Accreditation
8
Floors
112,700
sq ft
Nick Ireland Head of UK Property Segregated Fund Management, Aberdeen Asset Management plcThis sale is in line with the strategy to realise profit from mature assets where the business plan has been completed. The relationship with GPE has been an extremely successful one and the high quality of 95 Wigmore Street is a testimony to this.
Standout features
Benchmark Yield
In April 2015, we sold 95 Wigmore Street for £222.4 million reflecting a net initial yield of 3.4% and a capital value of £2,209 per sq. ft. The sale price set a new benchmark low yield for this part of the West End and crystallised a profit on cost since commitment to the development of 105%.
Creating Value
Following the acquisition of 95 Wigmore Street in 2006, we originally planned to redevelop the site in 2009 but as the financial crisis took hold in early 2008, we postponed our plans and quickly relet the space on short flexible leases to preserve income.
As the market started to recover in 2011, we commenced construction securing our first pre-let in November 2012 of the first to third floors to Lane Clark & Peacock LLP, a leading firm of financial, actuarial and business consultants. Five months later, we pre-let the fifth to seventh floors to Bridgepoint, a leading private equity firm and then let the fourth and last floor, within six weeks of completion, to Pyrford International.
Sustainable Development
The property achieved a BREEAM Excellent and an EPC rating of B. Solar tube louvres were installed at roof level, providing the dual function of screening the mechanical services plant whilst also providing hot water generation to the building’s toilet and shower facilities.
82 cycle spaces, with a high quality shower and locker provision, were provided in excess of BREEAM and BCO requirements at the time, providing flexibility and future proofing the development for this emerging occupier need for cycling and showering facilities.
Toby Courtauld Chief Executive, Great Portland EstatesThe sale of 95 Wigmore Street is the culmination of an exceptional development project for GWP, with the office accommodation fully let only six weeks after practical completion. The sale continues our strategy of recycling capital out of assets where we have created significant value and back into our portfolio of central London development and refurbishment projects, timed to coincide with a shortage of new Grade A space to let.
Location
95 Wigmore Street is situated within Marylebone just yards from the buzz of Oxford Street, and close to St Christopher’s Place, a busy retail destination, framed by pedestrianised streets, with its mix of boutique shops, restaurants and bars.
Transport links
- Bond Street 3 minutes' walk
- Oxford Circus 7 minutes' walk
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