Housebuilder Pocket Living secures £6.6m funding from Pluto Finance to accelerate housing delivery

Affordable housing developer Pocket Living has announced that it has secured a £6.6 million debt facility with Pluto Finance, a leading provider of finance for property developers and investors. Lexi Finance, a specialist brokerage, introduced the two parties.

This represents the first deal with Pluto Finance, which is a 12-month facility secured against its Harbard Close asset in Barking. This will accelerate the deployment of the funds to support the delivery of Pocket’s future schemes.

The new homes at Pocket’s 78-home Harbard Close development are available exclusively to first-time buyers who either live or work in London and earn under the Mayor of London’s income threshold for affordable housing. The apartments are available from £192,000 - a minimum of a 20% discount to the local market, and purchasers own 100% of their property.

Paul Rickard, Chief Financial Officer at Pocket Living, comments: “This new funding partnership with Pluto Finance will allow us to further accelerate the delivery of the homes we build specifically for first-time buyers in London, who otherwise might be priced out of their local market.

“This commitment is a sign of confidence in Pocket as we look to build our 1,000th home this year and supports our ambitions for growth across London and beyond as part of our financial strategy.”

Greg Dunne, Lending Director at Pluto Finance, added: “We are very impressed with Pocket Living’s innovative model to deliver much needed affordable housing.  With the Harbard Close development Pocket have once again demonstrated that it is possible to create good value flats without compromising on design or quality.”

Sam Le Pard of Lexi Finance added: “LEXI are fully supportive of Pocket’s ethos to build affordable homes for city makers, so it was a pleasure working with them on the Harbard transaction. Given Pocket’s product is entirely unique, I was impressed the Pluto team acted quickly to understand the funding requirement and provided market leading terms which they delivered within weeks of credit approval.”  

Coyote Software launches Coyote PLUS

Coyote Software, the cloud-based CRM system for buying and managing commercial real estate assets, has launched Coyote PLUS, a new managed data logging service for commercial real estate (CRE) teams. 

Coyote PLUS is a new subscription service for Coyote Software clients enabling acquisition and asset management teams to confidentially forward on their introductions, asset and deal information to a dedicated data management team to input on their behalf, freeing up time and resources for CRE companies whilst actively building their own proprietary database of comparables. 

The UK-based Coyote PLUS team of data management specialists log all investment opportunities accurately and quickly, carrying out a quality check before uploading the data to the client’s unique platform. The transactional and tenancy information, including introductions, marketing material, images and maps, is then available within 24 hours, allowing investment teams to build an invaluable and unique database of all available, comparable market intelligence with minimal effort. 

By building a database of investment and leasing comparables using data from potential deal opportunities, investment teams can use highly relevant investment and leasing comparables to underwrite bids faster. Asset management teams can use recent leasing comparables to set more accurate ERVs and leverage local occupier intelligence when negotiating lettings, setting business plan assumptions and providing additional evidence to valuers.  

Oli Farago, Co-Founder and CEO of Coyote Software, says: “On average, investment teams transact on less than 5% of the introductions they receive, meaning that valuable data is lost on more than 95% of introductions that aren’t fully logged. There’s a wealth of information that is often deleted or ignored, and subsequently not factored into current and future deals. So, we’ve kept it as simple as possible for our clients - they send us the information, and we upload it. Meaning they can make faster investment and asset management decisions, with greater confidence.” 

Coyote has been trialling Coyote PLUS with several key clients over the last four months, all of which have seen real value in using the subscription service, including Mark Kelly, Head of Asset Management at Argo Real Estate, who says: “Our team is logging over five times the intros we were before, and we are saving a huge amount of resource. Our team members can now focus more on research and analysis to support our partners and investors, with all the relevant transactional information now readily at hand.” 

Oli concludes: “By working and collaborating closely with our customers it became clear that Coyote PLUS offered the ability to increase efficiencies for our customers, allowing investment and asset management teams to focus on the most important aspects of their job – acquisitions, disposals and overall portfolio management.” 

LOGICOR LETS 72,980 SQ FT PETERLEE WAREHOUSE TO INNERGLASS

Logicor, a leading owner and manager of logistics real estate in Europe, has let Unit 2, Swan Road in Peterlee, UK to Innerglass Limited.

Innerglass is one of the North East’s largest suppliers of no-food consumables to the UK Hospitality and catering sectors. Due to its continuing growth, Innerglass has taken the refurbished 72,980 sq ft warehouse / production facility on a new lease to provide space for their expansion plans.

Located in Peterlee, UK within the South West Industrial Estate, the modern high-bay Unit 2, Swan Road has recently benefitted from a repositioning programme, including full roof refurbishment, new rooflights and LED lighting system, and re-coating the cladding. The office space was also fully refurbished whilst the exterior green space has also been landscaped and reconfigured. These enhancements have resulted in significantly improved EPC rating.

Richard Phillips, Logicor’s UK Portfolio Director, comments: “Unit 2, Swan Road is centrally located in the North East in a popular industrial area. We saw high interest from a number of operators for this fully refurbished space. We are delighted to welcome Innerglass to our UK portfolio and look forward to working with them as they continue to grow.”

Stephen Hoey, CEO of Innerglass Limited, says: “We are a family company from the North East, and our business continues to grow, resulting in us needing quality warehousing space, and Logicor provide us with the ideal facility to meet our needs for the next few years.”

Naylors Gavin Black and Cushman & Wakefield advised Logicor on this transaction.

Coyote appoints David Oates as CRO

Coyote Software, the cloud-based CRM system for buying and managing commercial real estate assets, has appointed David Oates as Chief Revenue Officer to lead in its next stage of growth.

David has over 20 years’ experience in enterprise Saas sales, most recently as Chief Revenue Officer at PRODA. An influential figure in the CRE technology sector, serving as the former SVP International for Argus Software, David has a longstanding record of driving high growth in nascent or turnaround software and services businesses.

In his new role at Coyote, David will work closely with CEO Oli Farago and the Senior Management Team to help shape the commercial strategy and vision of the company to establish and implement its long-term growth plan.

David comments: “I am delighted to have joined Coyote at such an exciting time. This is an exceptionally talented team who have created what is now a proven, value-focused solution for Investment, Asset and Property Managers. Couple this with an incredible customer base and a clear vision for the future, and Coyote are poised for significant growth. I am looking forward to being a part of that future success.”

Oli Farago, Founder and CEO of Coyote Software, says: “As the real estate world continues to embrace new technologies to enable their businesses to grow, at Coyote we have continued to build our team to meet and exceed our clients’ requirements. As the industry starts to emerge from the grips of Covid-19, now is the perfect time for David to steer us through our next phase of growth.”

Since July 2020, 10 new members have joined Coyote as the company has continued its growth throughout the global pandemic. In addition to David’s appointment, other recent appointments include Tristan Terry as Data Services Manager, Sam Jenkins who joins as Data Science Lead and Vim Raval appointed as Technical Support Analyst.

Pluto Finance to accelerate lending to SME builders of new UK residential homes following strategic investment from Universities Superannuation Scheme

Pluto Finance, a leading specialist property lender providing finance to small and medium-sized housebuilders, is pleased to announce a substantial strategic investment by the Universities Superannuation Scheme (“USS”), the UK’s largest private pension scheme with over £80bn assets under management. 

USS has made a significant minority investment in Pluto Finance to enable a major expansion of the business, as well as committing £75m as a cornerstone investor alongside Pluto’s sixth development lending vehicle, which is targeting a £300m capital raise this autumn. These funds will be used to provide financing to SME developers delivering new housing in the UK; Pluto has already financed the construction of more than 10,000 homes in the last 10 years.

This new commitment will supplement the existing £840m of institutional capital currently supporting Pluto’s lending activities, funding growth of Pluto’s existing strategies as well as planned new initiatives in commercial and residential investment lending.

Justin Faiz, Co-Founder of Pluto, comments: “We are delighted to be working with USS.  With its size, long-term perspective and commitment to the UK, USS is the perfect partner to help Pluto with its next phase of growth to become the leading one-stop-shop for all types of UK property finance.  Its support will allow us to expand our team and move into adjacent lending strategies, whilst maintaining the quick turnaround and flexibility that our borrowers have come to expect from Pluto. The USS investment is an incredible endorsement of our hard-working team and our lending track record, of which we are immensely proud.”

Eamon Ray, Senior Investment Director, Private Markets Group, USS Investment Management, comments: “USS is delighted to have established this strategic partnership with Pluto, highlighting our commitment to long-term investment in the UK particularly in critical sectors such as residential housing. The UK faces a chronic housing shortage and the sector requires long term sustainable capital to meet national targets. We believe our partnership  with a leading specialist in this sector will help bridge this gap in provision whilst providing our members with attractive returns to fund their pensions.”

Pluto closed its first real estate debt vehicle in 2011 and since then has lent over £2bn across more than 200 real estate loans, providing development finance as well as providing short term finance for acquisition, re-positioning or sell-through. The USS commitment to Pluto real estate private credit vehicles will sit alongside the capital committed by Pluto’s existing pension fund, insurance, asset management and other institutional investors. 

Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner acted as legal counsel and Alvarez & Marsal acted as tax advisor to Pluto.

NatWest Markets acted as financial advisor, Linklaters acted as legal counsel and PwC acted as tax advisor to USS.

Bridge Industrial acquires fourth industrial development site since opening its London office in November 2020

Bridge Industrial (“Bridge”), the US-based industrial real estate operating company and investment manager, has announced its fourth Greater London site acquisition for a new industrial development in Croydon.

The freehold 2.6-acre site on Factory Lane has been acquired from a private investor. The existing employment site will be redeveloped to provide a new 62,000 sq ft industrial/warehouse unit built speculatively to serve the last-mile logistics sector. Planning for the scheme – to be known as Bridge Point Croydon (BPC) - will be submitted towards the end of 2021.

Paul Hanley, Bridge’s London Partner, comments: “This Greater London site, our fourth site acquisition in just four months, is perfectly positioned to fit with our strategy of acquiring and developing high quality, purpose-built infill industrial assets to serve the last-mile logistics sector. Located in an established industrial location, Factory Lane, with access to the A23 – Purley Way - and the A232, the site provides excellent connections into Central London and out to the M25 to serve the Greater London area.”

Bridge was represented by Fidu Property in the transaction. DTRE and Colliers will be appointed as joint retained letting agents for BPC.

Bridge Industrial launched its UK operations in November 2020. In May, Bridge announced its first acquisition in North West London, Bridge Point Southall, followed by two further acquisitions in Barking and Uxbridge in July of this year. Bridge is actively pursuing land and development opportunities throughout Greater London, the South East, and the West Midlands.

LOGICOR LETS 29,112 SQ FT BIRMINGHAM WAREHOUSE TO HOMARY TECHNOLOGY

Logicor today announces it has secured a new lease with the online furniture and homeware company Homary Technology (UK) Ltd at Unit 2, Kingsbury Business Park, Birmingham.

Following a refurbishment including new LED lighting of the 29,112 sq ft premises, Homary Technology has taken a new lease to serve its growing online sales across the UK and Europe. This new transaction is on top of an existing lease with Homary for Unit 3, demonstrating Logicor’s commitment to creating long-lasting relationships with customers and providing space that helps businesses and communities connect and thrive.

The modern industrial building comprises of warehouse space and ground floor office space with a reception. The unit benefits from a service yard and allocated parking.

Kingsbury Business Park provides its tenants with state-of-the-art facilities and superior accessibility fronting the A4097, which gives direct access to Junction 9 of the M42 and M6 Toll Road, with Kingsbury Road roundabout and the A38 within half a mile, providing access to the M6.

Bill Martyn-Smith, Asset Manager at Logicor UK, comments: “Homary Technology, a valued customer within our UK portfolio, are currently in occupation at Kingsbury Business Park and urgently required a new, larger space. We are delighted to have been able to fulfil their requirements quickly in just a two-week turnaround from enquiry to completion to accommodate their fast-growing business.”

Thomas Wang, Warehouse Manager of Homary Technology (UK) Ltd, says: “Logicor have provided warehouse services for us since October 2020, and I am very pleased we chose Logicor as a business partner. Their team have responded very quickly to all of our enquires and have provided professional advice and solutions. We required an expansion of our warehousing operations in Birmingham in response to continued growth in customer demand for our exclusive designs. I am very delighted Logicor’s team has concluded the whole process within two weeks from our first enquiry. Logicor’s high standard warehouse facilities fit our business needs and I trust they will help our business in anticipation of future growth”.

Lambert Smith Hampton and Harris Lamb are retained as letting agents for Kingsbury Business Park.

LOGICOR SECURES TWO LONG-TERM LEASES WITH SUPER SMART SERVICE

Logicor has secured two new long-term leases, for a total of 280,354 sq ft of Midlands logistics space, with Super Smart Service, the global e-commerce fulfilment business.

In Worcester, Super Smart Service have taken a long-term lease at Worcester 163, a 163,170 sq ft industrial and logistics unit. The new facility fronts J6 of the M5, giving direct access to the national motorway network, with Worcester city centre only two and half miles to the northeast of the site.

In Lichfield, Super Smart Service have taken a long-term lease at Lichfield 117, comprising a 117,184 sq ft logistics and industrial unit adjacent to the A38 and a few minutes’ walk from Lichfield Trent Valley train station.

Having also recently let a 49,000 sq ft building at Lichfield, only 310,000 sq ft of logistics and industrial space remains available in Liberty Park, Lichfield, for new Logicor warehouse design and build opportunities.

Anthony McCluskie, Logicor’s Director, Asset Management - UK, comments: “We are very pleased to have assisted Super Smart Service with their requirements for Midlands space to serve their rapidly growing business. A new customer within our UK Logicor portfolio, we very much looking forward to working further with them as they expand and thrive.”

Charles Lu, General Manager of Super Smart Service comments: “We’re delighted to continue up-scaling our operations in the West Midlands and Worcestershire.”

"Completing the two leases with Logicor on both prime logistics locations in Lichfield and Worcester is ideal for us to expand our fulfilment warehousing businesses and serve the online retailers, and in the meantime create more job opportunities for the local communities. We are glad to form a long-term partnership with Logicor for our future development plans.”

Harris Lamb, BNP Paribas and DTRE are joint letting agents for Worcester 163. CBRE and Avison Young are joint letting agents at Lichfield 117. Super Smart Service was represented by Avison Young.

Bridge Industrial recruits Analyst to UK team

Bridge Industrial (“Bridge”), the US-based industrial real estate operating company and investment manager, has appointed Leigh Robinson as an Analyst within its UK team. 

At Bridge, Leigh will assist in the underwriting and development process for industrial projects in Greater London and the West Midlands, joining London Partner Paul Hanley, Vice President Chris Doloughty and Project Delivery Head Steve Vickers.

Leigh joins from Avison Young where he was a Surveyor in the Capital Markets Group, responsible for providing specialist acquisition, disposal, and speculative funding advice to institutional, corporate and property company investor clients. His role included modelling complex, speculative developments through scenario and cash flow analysis.

Paul Hanley, Bridge’s London Partner, comments: “We are pleased to announce that Leigh has joined the UK team to assist in our rapid site acquisition programme and ongoing development plans. It is a busy time for us, and with a substantial capital to deploy we are continuing to acquire aggressively.”

Bridge launched its UK operations in November 2020 to pursue land and development opportunities throughout Greater London, the South East and the West Midlands, and has since announced its first site acquisition in Southall.

Logicor Shortlisted for IAS Awards 2021 Property Company of the Year

Logicor has been shortlisted for this year’s IAS Fund / Property Company of the Year. The annual IAS Awards ceremony recognises the very best within the UK logistics and industrial property market and is well regarded as the UK’s premier awards event.

Charlie Howard, Logicor’s Managing Director, UK, says: “We are truly thrilled to be shortlisted for this prestigious award. The Logicor UK team have worked tirelessly with our agents and customers over the last 12 months, and it is an honour to have been nominated in this category.

“We very much look forward to attending the luncheon in person again and joining our colleagues, clients, partners and peers in what will be a very special event.”

The IAS Awards 2021, now in its 34th year, will be held on 23rd September. The Fund / Property Company Award will be voted for by approximately 1,000 IAS Members over the next few weeks.

Bridge Industrial acquires two new sites for industrial development

Bridge Industrial (“Bridge”), the US-based industrial real estate operating company and investment manager, has announced two new site acquisitions in Barking and Uxbridge, shortly after acquiring its first project since opening its London office in November 2020.

The freehold of River House on the Riverside Industrial Way, Uxbridge UB8 has been acquired in a sale and leaseback deal from owner/occupier Starlight Designs. River House, Uxbridge consists of a production, warehouse and office unit on a 2.30-acre (0.93 hectare) site with two access points. Riverside Way Industrial Estate is located to the west of central Uxbridge, fronting onto Riverside Way which is accessed from the A4007 with good connections into Central London and the UK motorway network.

Bridge will demolish the existing building once Starlight vacates the property in May 2022 before beginning construction on Bridge Point Uxbridge, an approximately 50,000 sq ft Class A industrial facility that will be built speculatively to serve the last-mile logistics sector. The project is due for completion in Q1 2023.

Bridge was represented by Cogent Real Estate and Savills advised Starlight Designs in the transaction.

In Barking, Bridge has purchased the former Mercedes Benz commercial vehicle dealership on Alfreds Way (A13) from Mercedes Benz Retail Group Limited with full vacant possession. The Mercedes Benz facility, currently comprising an office building and separate warehouse, occupies a 2.15-acre (0.87 hectare) site. With vacant possession, planning permission will be sought imminently for Bridge Point Barking, which will total approximately 50,000 sq ft of new Class A industrial space. Construction on the project is expected to commence in April 2022.

Paul Hanley, Bridge’s London Partner, comments: “We are now well under way on our site acquisition programme, with these two deals following swiftly on from our first purchase in Southall. We are excited to be growing our portfolio throughout Greater London with a number of other sites under offer, which we will announce in due course.”

Bridge was represented by DTRE and Colliers acted for Mercedes Benz Retail Group Limited in the transaction.

In May, Bridge announced its first acquisition in North West London, Bridge Point Southall, a Class A industrial facility that is expected to be completed by Q1 2023. Bridge is actively pursuing land and development opportunities throughout Greater London, the South East, and the West Midlands.

Pluto Finance advances £150m of new loans in Q2

Pluto Finance has closed £150 million of new loans since it announced its target of £600 million in new lending for 2021.

In March, following the repayment of £300 million from its loan book and a new capital injection, the specialist property lender put a target in place for a total of £600 million of new lending for the remainder of 2021 and is well underway in fulfilling this goal.

In one of its largest loans this year, Pluto Finance has completed a £50 million Stretch Senior Development Loan, including site acquisition, for a residential scheme in West Hampstead, London. The lender has also completed a £42 million Bridge finance for a large site in Walthamstow allowing the borrower time to secure forward funding and cashflow initial construction works for development. 

Three Development Exit Bridge loans have been provided, totalling £20 million, across the South East, allowing the borrowers more time to sell the completed units. Another Bridge loan on a partially let office building in Weybridge, of £9 million has been completed to enable the borrower to seek full vacant possession to develop the site.

Finally, two further Stretch Senior loans have completed, totalling £29 million, including a £26 million refinancing in Godalming to fund 128 new units after the borrower obtained additional planning permission for the site.

Justin Faiz, Partner at Pluto Finance, comments: “With the continued backing of our top-tier investors, we are continuing to push forward at full speed, with a number of other deals in the immediate pipeline and are well on our way to meeting our target of £600 million in new lending this year.”

Pluto Finance appoints Matthew Tucker as Construction Director

Pluto Finance has appointed Matthew Tucker as Construction Director, joining the firm’s London-based team.

Matthew joins from JLL where he spent three years as Associate Director responsible for development monitoring. Before that, he worked for global engineering firm WSP and Artelia Group.

At Pluto Finance, Matthew will be providing in-house construction advice, undertaking pre-contract due-diligence, and overseeing construction performance on the existing loan portfolio.

Matthew joins Pluto Finance’s 20-strong team which specialises in providing Stretch Senior development finance, Senior Development Finance and Bridging Loans in the property sector. With backing from some of the world’s largest institutional investors, Pluto Finance is currently funding the development of over 2,000 new homes in the UK.

Justin Faiz, Partner at Pluto Finance, comments: “Matthew brings with him over 12 years’ experience within the construction industry, advising a wide range of lenders and investors across multiple real estate sectors, and we are delighted to have him on board.  Matthew’s appointment will increase the efficiency of agreeing and completing construction funds and will enable the team to make more flexible decisions in-house.”

OUTLINE PLANNING GRANTED FOR LOGICOR’S 360,000 SQ FT WIDNES BUILT TO SUIT LOGISTICS SCHEME

Logicor, one of the largest owners and operators of modern logistics and distribution properties in Europe, announces that outline planning permission has been granted for up to 360,000 sq ft of new industrial and warehouse facilities in the South Liverpool area, at Liberty Park Widnes on Newstead Road, Widnes - UK.

The 18-acre site can accommodate purpose built high specification industrial and distribution units up to 360,000 sq ft and lies adjacent to a new 108,091 sq ft warehouse which is available for immediate occupation. Logicor have appointed Stoford as Development Managers at Liberty Park Widnes.

Widnes is located in the north west of the UK, with direct access to the national motorway network via the Knowsley Expressway at the heart of South Liverpool’s thriving employment zone.

Tom Blakely, Director, Asset Management at Logicor, comments:

“This project is an exciting opportunity to bring forward new, high-quality logistics buildings in a strategically important location. The area is acknowledged both regionally and nationally as a premier location for a wide variety of businesses, as well as for the UK’s fastest growing airport, Liverpool John Lennon, and it is set for further growth with the recent opening of Liverpool2 deep-water container terminal. With a skilled labour pool of 670,000 people and currently 264,000 employed in the manufacturing industry, there remains immediate access to a wide labour force in the region.”

Dan Gallagher, Joint Managing Director, Stoford, said:

“Liberty Park Widnes has the potential to bring jobs and inward investment to an area that continues to rapidly develop. This is the only fully serviced site of its size in the south Liverpool area, which benefits from excellent transport links and a willing workforce on the doorstep to fulfil any employment requirements. Stoford has a proven track record of delivering high-quality accommodation that is attractive to major manufacturing and logistics companies and we look forward to working with Logicor to bring these exciting plans to fruition.”

DTRE and Avison Young are instructed as letting agents on both the existing building and the new warehouse.

For more information, please visit libertyparkwidnes.co.uk

Pluto Finance introduces Flexi-Rate development exit bridge loans from 0.5% pm

Pluto Finance has introduced a new Flexi-Rate bridge loan product with competitive tailormade rates on its Residential Development Exit Loans from £3 million plus, with monthly rates matching the development’s Loan To Value (LTV).

Flexi-Rate Development Exit 

• Development exit on completed stock

• Minimum £3m loan size

• Monthly rate = LTV (e.g. 55% = 0.55% pm)

• Max 77% LTV

• Arrangement Fee 0.5% up to 70%, 1% above 70% LTV

• LTV assumes 12 months interest and fees included

Furthermore, Pluto is extending the Flexi-Rate pricing to Finish and Exit Bridge Loans.

Flexi-Rate Finish and Exit 

• Minimum £3m loan size

• Maximum 72% LTV

• 1% Arrangement Fee

• Dev Exit Flexi-Rate (as above) +0.2% pm until practical completion

• Dev Exit Flexi-Rate from practical completion

• Minimum construction draws of £100k

• No ground or structural works

• Lender monitoring surveyor to verify cost to complete; no more than 30% of total build costs outstanding

• Development must be watertight, with up-to-date building control and new homes warranty

• LTV figure includes 12 months equivalent interest and fees

DHL TAKES NEW LEASE AT LOGICOR’S 219,122 SQ FT HAMS HALL WAREHOUSE

Logicor, a leading owner and operator of logistics real estate in Europe, today announces it has leased a 219,112 sq ft warehouse and distribution unit in Hams Hall Distribution Park, Birmingham - UK to DHL. The global leader in the logistics industry has taken a new long-term lease at the premises to facilitate its expansion requirements.

Hams Hall is a well-established, leading multimodal logistics, distribution and manufacturing location with direct access to Junction 9 of the M42 and adjacent to the M6 and M6 toll road. The Hams Hall Rail Freight Terminal (HHRT) is situated to the south of the park and provides services to Europe as well as the rest of the UK.

Anthony McCluskie, Logicor’s Director, Asset Management, comments: “We are delighted to further strengthen our long-term relationship with DHL by facilitating this new lease.

“Alpha 1 was previously let to AX who had sub-let part of the building to DHL. Working closely with both customers, we were able to move AX into another building within the Logicor UK portfolio, which allowed DHL to expand into the entire premises at Canton Lane.”

LOGICOR RECRUITS TOM BLAKELY FROM DHL

Logicor, a leading owner and operator of logistics real estate in Europe, today announces it has appointed Tom Blakely as Director of Asset Management within their UK Asset Management team.

Tom joins the Logicor team to work alongside Anthony McCluskie, Jack Garrett and the wider UK team, asset managing Logicor’s UK’s extensive logistics and industrial portfolio.

Logicor’s UK portfolio totals approximately 31.5 million sq ft of industrial, logistics and business space across over 170 high-quality distribution locations, with almost 70% of its UK assets located in the Midlands ‘Golden Triangle’ and the South East.

Charlie Howard, Logicor’s Managing Director, UK, said, “At Logicor we work very closely with our customers to find their ideal business space to suit their needs. We are delighted to have Tom join the UK team and bring his customer centric experience to Logicor.”

Tom Blakely adds: “I am thrilled to be joining Charlie and the team at Logicor during such an exciting time in the logistics market. Demand for this sector remains strong and the appetite from both occupiers and investors shows little sign of waning. Alongside the well-established team I am looking forward to working with Logicor's existing and future customers on various interesting projects."

Tom joins Logicor from DHL where for the past five years he was Regional Real Estate Manager within their Corporate Real Estate team, responsible for the property portfolio spanning the West Midlands, M6 Corridor, North West and Ireland. Prior to joining DHL, Tom worked for 10 years as a Senior Associate Partner within the National Logistics team at Gerald Eve.

Bridge Industrial acquires Southall site for first UK industrial development

Bridge Industrial (“Bridge”), the US-based industrial real estate operating company and investment manager, has announced its first acquisition for industrial space since opening its London office in November 2020.

Bridge has purchased a site with an existing warehouse unit in the Great Western Industrial Park in Southall, North West London.

Bridge will commence the construction of Bridge Point Southall during Q2 2022, providing a Grade A industrial facility that will be speculatively built to serve the last-mile logistics sector. Completion of the project is expected in Q1 2023.

Paul Hanley, Bridge’s London Partner, comments: “Since launching in the UK we have been actively pursuing land and development opportunities throughout Greater London and are pleased to have a number of sites already under offer. We have substantial capital to invest across Greater London, the South East and the West Midlands, and are delighted to have completed our first site acquisition, with more to follow very soon.”

The site is perfectly located with easy access into Central London as well as great connections to Heathrow Airport, the M4 and the wider UK motorway network, making it a prime location for last mile logistics.

Bridge was represented by Cogent Real Estate in the transaction.

LOGICOR EXPANDS ITS UK MULTI-LET INDUSTRIAL TEAM

Logicor has expanded its UK Multi-Let Industrial (MLI) team with the appointment of two Asset Managers who will be based in the UK team’s Solihull office.

Kerri Cox joins the UK MLI team as an Asset Manager. Kerri joins from Savills, having worked for six years at Intu Properties Plc as a property/asset manager.

Bill Martyn-Smith joins the UK team as an Asset Manager from JLL where he worked in the Capital Markets team. Bill started his career as a graduate surveyor within asset management at JLL before moving into the Industrial & Logistics team.

Both Kerri and Bill will work alongside Richard Phillips, Logicor’s Portfolio Director and head of Logicor’s UK MLI team, and James Carney, Senior Asset Manager. The team manages a portfolio of circa 100 light industrial estates, totalling over 8 million sq ft, with approximately 1,250 tenants. With industrial units ranging in size from 500 to 120,000 sq ft, Logicor’s MLI portfolio is strategically located along major motorways and in close proximity to the UK’s prime industrial and logistics locations.

Richard Phillips comments: “I am delighted to welcome Kerri and Bill to the team to assist with the management of the MLI portfolio across the UK.”

Bridge Industrial and PSP Investments Form Joint Venture for UK Logistics Investment

Joint venture to assemble portfolio of urban infill last-mile industrial facilities in Greater London and the UK

Bridge Industrial (“Bridge”) and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board (“PSP Investments”) today announced the establishment of a joint venture to acquire and develop logistics properties in the United Kingdom, targeting a portfolio value of £1 billion ($1.4 billion USD).

The venture has a build-to-core focus, including the acquisition and development of last-mile logistics assets within high-barrier infill submarkets in Greater London and the Midlands region. Bridge will oversee development and the implementation of value-add measures to create state-of-the-art, purpose-built infill industrial assets. The venture will target market-leading sustainability credentials.

“We are excited to form this strategic partnership with PSP Investments as Bridge continues to grow its global portfolio and capital partnerships,” said Sean Zasche, Bridge’s Chief Financial Officer. “Their focus on high-quality, infill real estate and long-term ownership aligns well with Bridge’s business model.”

Bridge’s UK operations are led by Paul Hanley, Partner, who oversees a London-based team of acquisition and development professionals.

“We’re extremely excited about the growth in the logistics industry that is creating strong demand for facilities across the United Kingdom,” said Hanley. “This joint venture with PSP Investments marks the beginning of a long-term partnership that will allow us to continue the strategic expansion of our portfolio.”

PSP Investments is one of Canada’s largest pension investment managers with a diversified global portfolio across public and private markets.

“We are pleased to be partnering with Bridge to invest in the UK logistics sector as we grow our already extensive European logistics portfolio,” said Stéphane Jalbert, PSP’s Managing Director for Europe and Asia Pacific, Real Estate Investments. “Urban logistics is a key sector for PSP globally, given the accelerated growth of e-commerce and the need to adapt real estate to meet shifting consumer behaviour. Bridge has proven development capabilities from which the venture will benefit, enhancing returns beyond the sector trend.”