Edinburgh investment company secures major cash and carry tenants for Sighthill warehouse
Edinburgh-based property investment specialist SRA Ventures has swiftly secured major cash and carry tenants for its latest six-figure warehouse acquisition.
The Shaf Rasul-owned company recently purchased two warehouse properties in the capital’s Sighthill Industrial Estate for £725,000 plus costs from Stirling-based Alexander (Scotland) & Co Ltd, one of the country’s largest independent steel stockholders.
It has now agreed pre-let terms for no.8 Bankhead Crossway South with Edinburgh-based Crystal S & Co – Scotland’s fastest-growing supplier of oriental wholesale food – in a deal that will last 15 years.
Crystal S & Co, which already enjoys a £4million turnover after opening in 2013, plans to relocate its current base in nearby Bankhead Drive and will open a wholesale distribution cash and carry at the new site once a refurbishment programme is complete.
In a departure for the business, this will also be open to the general public, offering products to discerning Edinburgh foodies that are difficult to find on the high street.
Alexander (Scotland) & Co Ltd has also signed a pre-let with SRA Ventures for number 6 Bankhead Crossway South, lasting for five years and returning the property to full usage for the steel stockholder.
While numbers 6 and 8 are highly dilapidated, SRA Ventures is embarking on a three month refurbishment programme that will bring them back into repair.
This will transform them into viable industrial propositions with significant strategic value, thanks to their location in one of the estate’s main thoroughfares, while enjoying great transport links at a distance of just five miles from the city centre.
Mr Rasul said of the new pre-let agreements: “I was pleased to snap up these excellent, versatile and well-positioned properties in the heart of Edinburgh where demand from large-scale users remains high.
The move follows on from SRA Ventures’ sale of a 27,000 square foot warehouse facility to Kangaroo Self Storage in Bankhead Drive for £1.6million earlier this month.
“It was no surprise to me that tenants were then quickly secured for such prime sites, generating value on all sides.
“Following refurbishment, both properties will be quickly deployed, with one of the fastest-growing businesses around, Crystal S & Co, particularly keen to realise the benefits of number eight.
“I wish them all the best for their future growth plans.”
Jing Shen, Company Director of Crystal S & Co, said: “This is a hugely important strategic move for the business, and we were pleased to agree terms with SRA.
“Not only does the new property provide a better, more accessible location for us, but will also spearhead an exciting transition – that of diversifying from a strictly cash and carry client base, to one that welcomes the general public as part of a more inclusive outlook.
“We believe that it will significantly raise our profile in the capital and make us a destination of choice for an increasingly adventurous culinary consumer, while still serving the needs of our valued existing customer base.”
Glen MacLachlan, Managing Director of Alexander (Scotland) and Co Ltd, said: “We are pleased to be a part of this deal which benefits our business in a number of ways – the most important sustainable element being the regeneration of our key hub in the capital on attractive terms.”
Partner at Graham + Sibbald, Keith Watters said: “We continue to see a strong market for industrial sites in Edinburgh where choice is often at a premium – and Sighthill Industrial Estate’s exceptional location remains its biggest asset.
“We were delighted to advise on, and facilitate, the conclusion of this deal, which is the seventh major acquisition by Graham + Sibbald on behalf of SRA Ventures across the past year. The site now has a strong investment value of £1.2million.”
SRA was advised by Scots legal firm Gilson Gray. Head of Real Estate, Murray Stewart said: “We were pleased to once again advise SRA Ventures on all aspects of this transaction right from the start of the process. Crystal S & Co has exciting and ambitions plans for future growth in the capital and SRA was ideally positioned to provide this fast-growing business with the premises from which to realise those ambitions.”
Source Beattie Communications
