MDSR Investments has acquired the long leasehold interest in Festival Place Shopping Centre in Basingstoke from receivers BDO for £99.1m.
BDO’s business restructuring partners Tony Nygate, Kiri Holland and Lee Causer were appointed as fixed charge receivers of Festival Place on 12 May 2023.
The scheme comprises 1,127,629 sq ft of retail, leisure and F&B space on a 20-acre site, and benefits from a weighted average unexpired lease term (WAULT) of 5.76 years, with 4.36 years to break.
Tony Nygate, partner at BDO, said: “Following a comprehensive two-year strategy to improve and maximise the value of Festival Place, we are pleased to have completed the sale and achieve this outcome for creditors.”
Mark Garmon-Jones, director of retail investment at Savills, which acted on behalf of the receivers, added: “We are delighted to have completed the sale of Festival Place to MDSR Investments. The property provided the purchaser with an opportunity to acquire an asset with significant future potential. There are already considerations around introducing a mix of new exciting retail and leisure uses, aimed at enhancing dwell time, footfall and customer spend.”
MDSR has appointed Estama as both asset and property manager for the shopping centre and has tasked the firm with stabilising Festival Place’s performance, improving leasing, elevating its overall retail mix and maximising NOI.
Eoin Conway, managing director of Estama, said: “This is a major milestone for Estama since becoming employee-owned and a moment of real pride for our team. Ross Campbell and George Grimes, our respective heads of asset and property management and their teams, have worked closely together on this appointment, and it’s a brilliant example of how our integrated approach to asset and property management delivers results.
“We’ve seen steady, sustainable growth in the business over the past 18 months, and we’re ready to take on more. What’s most encouraging is the continued trust our clients place in us – whether it’s long-standing relationships or new instructions from buyers who want us involved from day one. That speaks volumes.”
MDSR Investments were advised by CBRE and Estama.
