8 May 2018
Ediston Property Investment Company plc
Hull, Kingston Retail Park - new letting to B&M Retail Limited
Ediston Property Investment Company plc (LSE: EPIC) ('the Company') announces that it has signed an agreement for lease with B&M Retail Limited ('B&M') at Kingston Retail Park, Hull.
B&M has agreed terms to increase their occupation on the retail park by upsizing from a unit of 10,271 sq. ft. to one of 24,225 sq. ft. B&M has agreed to lease unit 1b, which was occupied by Toys R Us, who entered administration earlier this year.
B&M has agreed to sign a 10 year lease at an annual rent of £302,813 and will receive an incentive of 12 months' rent free. To facilitate the letting B&M will surrender the lease on their existing unit, which expires in 2021, providing another asset management opportunity for the Investment Manager.
Calum Bruce, Director of Investment at Ediston Properties Limited, the Company's Investment Manager, said: "Identifying a tenant so soon after the demise of Toys R Us is positive, not just for the asset but for the out of town retail market as a whole. It proves that there is good tenant demand for well-located retail parks.
Agreeing this letting secures a good covenant on a long lease, factors which improve the quality of the Company's income stream. We are already looking for a new tenant to take the smaller unit and are working on a few leads."
For further information:
Ediston Properties Limited (Investment Manager) 0131 225 5599
Calum Bruce
Canaccord Genuity Limited 020 7523 8000
Will Barnett
Neil Brierley
Dominic Waters
David Yovichic
Lansons
David Masters 07825 427 514
Michael Lach 020 7294 3645
Maitland Group (Company Secretary) 0131 550 3763
Donald Cameron
Notes to editors:
Ediston Property Investment Company plc is a UK real estate investment trust (REIT) with a premium listing on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange. The Company invests in UK commercial real estate assets to achieve its objective of providing its shareholders with an attractive level of income together with the potential for capital and income growth. It invests principally in three commercial property sectors: office, retail (including retail warehouses) and industrial, without regard to a traditional property market relative return benchmark. The Company launched in October 2014 and as of 31 March 2018 it owned 17 properties with a value of £325.4m.
Portfolio management services are undertaken by Ediston Properties Limited, which currently manages property assets across the UK for institutional investors.