European last-mile logistics platform Crossbay has added over 500,000 sq.ft its UK portfolio with the acquisition of four assets for a combined total of over £80m (+€93.3m).
Crossbay, which recently announced deals in Italy and the Netherlands as part of its new vehicle, has purchased initial assets in England’s Watford, Leeds and Farnborough.
In Watford, Crossbay has acquired a business park from Eskmuir Properties Ltd. The 165,000 sq.ft site, forming part of a wider business park where Kodak, Royal Mail and Corona Energy are tenants, includes nine fully-let warehouses let to five tenants on relatively short WAULT agreements. It is less than five minutes from the M1, nine minutes from the M25 and 20 minutes from the M40, enabling excellent access to Central London and the south, the north and the northwest of England.
The first deal in Leeds is a 135,000 sq.ft warehouse in one of Wakefield’s leading distribution estates – where the NHS, Coca-Cola and Morrisons are tenants – acquired from Swiss Life Asset Management. Let to listed retailer Card Factory on a long-term reversionary lease, the asset is one of four Card Factory units in the area and home to their UK distribution hub. It is less than one mile away from junction 41 of the M1 motorway and the M62 corridor is around two miles away.
The second Leeds transaction is in Dewsbury’s Shawcross Business Park, where Crossbay will split a 169,000 sq.ft warehouse into two standalone prime mid-box units, undertaking a comprehensive modernization program including significant ESG upgrades. Acquired from owner-occupier Nobia Kitchens, the site less than ten minutes from the M62 and M1, where over two million people can be reached in less than thirty minutes and six million people in an hor.
In the South East town of Farnborough, a 41,000 sq.ft warehouse has been acquired from Workspace Group PLC, let to leading parcel and courier service Hermes (trading as Evri) on a flexible lease. The site includes full planning consent for refurbishment and ESG enhancement works, which Crossbay will undertake. Neighboring tenants include Yodel and BMW. The M3 is just over one mile away, offering connectivity to the national motorway network and London.
Marco Riva, CEO of Crossbay and head of logistics at MARK, said: “The UK is a key strategic focus for our second portfolio having repriced faster than majority of European markets and will complement our strong and established presence in leading continental European markets. We are well capitalised and have teams of local experts to accelerate deal flow, meaning we are well positioned to take advantage of the current opportunity in the logistics market.”
Crossbay’s second vehicle launched in October 2022, following the sale of its first portfolio to Prologis for €1.6bn in 2022. The last-mile specialist will build on its existing presence in Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, France and Poland by expanding into additional territories including Denmark, Sweden and the UK.
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