Carphone Warehouse Headquarters 1 Portal Way, L ondon W3 6RS
Prime west London Office Investment Investment Summary
- Prime headquarters office building in West London
- Very prominent location on the A40 with excellent transport links
- Four miles from London’s West End (18 minutes by London Underground)
- Area to benefit greatly from Crossrail, cutting journey time to the West End to 7.5 minutes
- 151,653 sq ft with a maximum floorplate of 79,227 sq ft
- High specification with excellent access to power and fibre network connectivity Next Page
- Excellent underlying residual value
- Freehold
- Let to the 5A1 covenant of Carphone Warehouse Limited until 1st February 2023
- Current rental income of £3,599,000 per annum (£23.73 per sq ft)
- Fixed uplift in March 2017 to £4,172,237 (£27.51 per sq ft)
- We are seeking offers in excess of £42,500,000, subject to contract and exclusive of VAT
- Attractive Net Initial Yield of 8.00% rising to 9.28% in March 2017, allowing for purchaser’s costs at 5.80% Previous Page
Investment Summary not to scale
Location Destination Distance Destination Distance The Carphone Warehouse Headquarters office building is located within the Hammersmith 2 miles City 7 miles London Borough of Ealing, 4 miles west of Central London and 2 miles north of Chiswick Park 2 miles Stockley Park 8 miles Chiswick and Hammersmith. The property’s location provides easy access to Ealing Broadway 2 miles Heathrow International Airport 8 miles Central London, the Thames Valley, and all the London International Airports. Westfield Shopping Centre 2 miles Canary Wharf 10 miles Paddington 3.5 miles Maidenhead 20 miles West End 4 miles Reading 30 miles Communications
Road The property benefits from excellent road links. The A40 Western Avenue provides direct access east to Central London (4 miles), and west to the A406 North Circular (1.5 miles), the M40 motorway (10 miles) and the M25 motorway (12 miles). The A406 North Circular provides easy access to the M4/A4 (2 miles), the M1 (4 miles) and the A1(M) (11 miles). An extensive bus network also operates in the area.
Underground North Acton underground station is located a 2-minute walk north of the property, providing Central Line services to the West End (18 minutes) and City (30 minutes). Park Royal underground station is located 1 mile to the west, providing Piccadilly Line services to Heathrow Airport (32 minutes) and Central London (30 minutes). North Acton underground station is soon to be the subject of an extensive refurbishment and upgrade, incorporating new amenity space.
Air The property is well served by International Airports including Heathrow (8 miles), City (13 miles), Gatwick (25 miles), Luton (25 miles) and Stansted (32 miles).
Crossrail and Rail Links Acton Main Line Station is located less than a 10-minute walk to the south and will be completely rebuilt to accommodate an increase in passenger numbers following the introduction of Crossrail in 2018/19, whilst continuing to serve the local railway network.
Crossrail will provide a high speed rail service which will link Acton with key destinations including Heathrow Airport, Bond Street, Liverpool Street and Canary Wharf. Crossrail will bring 1.5 million more people within 60 minutes reach of London’s key business areas and will carry more than 200 million passengers a year. For more information please visit www.crossrail.co.uk.
Crossrail Route Map & Journey Times (Source: Crossrail)
Situation
The property is highly prominent, being clearly visible from the A40 Western Avenue with frontages onto and access from Portal Way and Wales Farm Road (A4000).
The A40 is a major route into Central London with over 75,000 cars passing per day attracting strong demand for advertising hoardings. As a result one of the largest commercially available digital advertising screens in the UK (1,130 sq ft) is situated immediately to the west of the property.
The property also benefits from excellent nearby amenities, with a Ramada Encore hotel and Virgin Active gym to the south, a Holiday Inn Express, Tesco Express and NatWest bank to the north and an Asda superstore to the north-west.
Office occupiers including Boden, Diageo, River Island, Lovefilm and Tetley GB Ltd have all located in the area, drawn by its excellent communications and proximity to Central London, attractive rents, and exclusion from the Congestion Charge Zone.
The immediate area has experienced a significant increase in residential development, including around 450 apartments and 900 student beds with further development in the pipeline. The area has been particularly popular with students, since 11 university campuses lie within 35 minutes journey time of Next Page the site.
The property is highlighted within Ealing’s Unitary Development Plan as a Special Opportunity Site and, as such, offers significant opportunities for major redevelopment. The property is identified as being suitable for “tall buildings” and high density mixed use development, providing excellent scope to increase the value of the property. The property may also be suitable for use as a datacentre, subject to planning.
Sat Nav: W3 6RS not to scale Local Developments
1 Westgate, Victoria Road 4 North Acton Underground Station (Central Line) 7 The Perfume Factory 10 Ramada Encore Hotel 15-storey Fairview development comprising 446 Ealing Council has submitted a CPO to acquire Multi-let business units. Pre-application 150 bed hotel developed by Frogmore in 2004. flats, Holiday Inn Express, Tesco Express and the Esso garage to provide a new station square submitted in 2004 for development of three Ladbrokes. Completed 2007. and amenity space. towers to provide 234 flats, offices and retail. 11 Shurgard, Gypsy Corner Self storage facility developed by Frogmore 2 The Costume Store, Victoria Road 5 Victoria Road and Chase Road 8 Portal West Business Centre in 2004. 18-storey student housing development by Planning application submitted for 150 flats Business units developed by Frogmore in 2005 Berkeley First, on behalf of the University of over 18 storeys. with tenants including TSS Security, Rigby & 12 Remploy Acton Arts, with 718 student beds and ground floor Peller and Lovefilm. Factory employing disabled people developed retail. Completed September 2012. 6 NEC House, Victoria Road by Frogmore in 2006. Planning application submitted by Berkeley 9 5 Portal Way 3 Portal Way First, on behalf of Imperial College London, The freehold of this 31,605 sq ft office building 13 Acton Main Line 8-storey student housing development by for 657 student beds over 19 storeys. is under offer. Station to be redeveloped upon the introduction Goldcrest. It will comprise 184 student beds of Crossrail in 2018/19. with ground floor retail and amenity space. Currently under construction. 7 4
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13 Acton Main Line 200m Description
The property, redeveloped in 2001, is a very prominent two storey headquarters office building totalling 151,653 sq ft. The building provides unique open plan floor plates of 70,818 sq ft and 79,227 sq ft, with surface and basement parking. Recently-refurbished facilities include a communal garden area of 12,120 sq ft, a large roof terrace of 4,300 sq ft, a restaurant/canteen, gymnasium and workplace nursery. There are also brand new breakout areas with a Starbucks coffee shop.
The property is of steel frame construction with clad elevations including a double glazed structural window system. The roofs are finished with insulated roof sheets. The four large lightwells and atrium, combined with the excellent floor to ceiling heights, provide for very good natural light.
The property occupies a highly secure site of 3.5 acres (4.5 acres including Estate Road) providing 24-hour security with perimeter palisade fencing, two gated entrances and CCTV.
The property’s high office specification includes: - Four pipe fan coil air-conditioning - Two 275 kVA diesel generators - Cat 2 lighting - Uninterrupted power supplied from two - Suspended ceilings separate ring mains - Fully accessible raised floors with 150mm - Excellent fibre network connectivity clear void - 235 car parking spaces (71 surface and 164 Next Page - Two 10-person passenger lifts and a goods lift basement), reflecting an attractive ratio of - Excellent floor to ceiling height up to 3.925m 1:645 sq ft Previous Page Next Page
Description Previous Page
Description Accommodation
Floor Use Area (sq m) Area (sq ft)
First Office 6,579.2 70,818 Ground Office 7,360.5 79,227 Ground Reception 128.6 1,384 Ground Storage 6.6 71 Ground Security 14.2 153 Total 14,089.1 151,653
Floor plans
Ground floor Victoria Road First floor N not to scale not to scale Portal Way
Wales Farm Road Tenure
Freehold.
The ownership includes Portal Way which is not adopted and therefore maintained through an Estate Service Charge, split equally between the six adjoining ownerships. The 2013 budget is £15,000.
Tenancy Details
The property is let to Carphone Warehouse Limited on a Full Repairing and Insuring lease from 26th March 2002 expiring on 1st February 2023, providing an unexpired term of approximately 10.5 years. The current rent passing is £3,599,000 per annum with a fixed uplift on 26th March 2017 to £4,172,237 per annum until expiry.
The current rent reflects £23.73 per sq ft and will rise to £27.51 per sq ft.
A mobile telecoms mast agreement between Carphone Warehouse Limited and T Mobile is in place and is currently under re-negotiation. The historic rent was £9,000 per annum, although this is due to increase. Covenant Information
The Carphone Warehouse was founded by Sir Charles Dunstone in 1989 as a mobile phone retailer offering its customers simple, impartial advice over the right combination of mobile phone handset and cellular network. Following international expansion it became the largest independent telecommunications retailer in Europe.
The company listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2000 and in 2008 Best Buy Co., Inc., a world leading consumer electronics retailer, acquired 50% of the Group’s retail and distribution business creating a joint venture known as Best Buy Europe which includes Carphone Warehouse Limited.
Best Buy Co., Inc. was founded in 1966 and has operations in the US, Canada, Mexico and China as well it’s 50% share in Best Buy Europe. It posted sales of over $50bn in the year to March 2012.
Carphone Warehouse Limited is the operating company for Best Buy Europe’s UK operations and has approximately 800 stores throughout the UK and well developed online channels. It specialises in combining hardware, connections and services making it ideally placed to benefit from the recent evolution of smartphones and other areas of complex technology. It is currently migrating its stores to a new ‘Wireless World’ format which are typically larger and offer a broader product range than its traditional stores.
Carphone Warehouse Limited has been in occupation of 1 Portal Way since 1996 and the property is the company’s registered headquarters. It has a Dun and Broadstreet (D&B) rating of 5A1 and has reported the following financial results:
Year Sales (£000’s) Profit/(Loss) Before Taxes (£000’s) Net Worth (£000’s)
02 April 2011 1,623,364 188,529 884,974 03 April 2010 1,583,205 61,646 714,392 04 April 2009 1,642,914 (43,361) 353,088
Source Dun and Bradstreet
Carphone Warehouse Group plc also has a D&B rating of 5A1. A timeline of its remarkable growth is detailed below:
More information can be found at www.cpwplc.com Occupational Market
Carphone Warehouse HQ has four striking characteristics for a West London office:
- A single 151,653 sq ft office building;
- Unique floorplates of 70,818 sq ft and 79,227 sq ft;
- Excellent public transport connections with good on site parking;
- Highly visible building from major London thoroughfare.
The West London office market is experiencing an upturn in activity with an estimated 2m sq ft of active requirements. This demand has been particularly strong for large floor plates, as evidenced by over 50% of current total requirements and around 40% of take up in the first half of 2012 being for space in excess of 50,000 sq ft. The subject property represents very good value within the West London market, as demonstrated by the key transactions and quoting rents set out in the table and plan below respectively.
Area Rent Date Property Tenant (sq ft) (psf) Aug 2012 Chiswick Green, Chiswick High Road, Chiswick ViaSat 52,000 £39.00
Jul 2012 Grove House, Hammersmith Winton Capital 63,000 £35 .00
Jul 2012 5 Longwalk, Stockley Park IMG Worldwide 107,500 £26.75
Jun 2012 2 Kingdom Street, Paddington Stat Oil 26,150 £57.50
May 2012 80 Hammersmith Road Marsh & Parsons 10,500 £36.50
May 2012 Building 6 Chiswick Park Aker Solutions 213,440 £46.50
Mar 2012 Ealing Cross, 79-89 Uxbridge Road, Ealing Toluna Group Ltd 9,500 £29.00
Feb 2012 Ealing Cross, 79-89 Uxbridge Road, Ealing Redbee Media 28,000 £27.00
Jan 2012 44 Brook Green, Hammersmith BBC Magazines 60,000 £34.00
Dec 2011 Horizon West, Great West Road, Brentford BSkyB 170,000 £25.00
Dec 2011 3 Olaf Street, Notting Dale Stella McCartney 12,500 £31.80
Dec 2011 2 Kingdom Street, Paddington Nokia 58,350 £57.50
Aug 2011 Kings House and Conquest House, Kingston Saipem 90,100 £24.00
Mar 2011 Bakers Court, Bakers Road, Uxbridge Coca-Cola 119,500 £27.40
Aug 2010 Building 9 Chiswick Park Tullow Oil 130,000 £33.50 Investment Market
Prime south east office yields for 10 year income have remained stable at 6.50%, due to a shortage of high quality office investment opportunities combined with strong investor demand for prime assets. The table below illustrates comparable investment transactions providing a range of yields from 6.25% to 7.25%, clearly demonstrating the subject property’s exceptional value at 8.00%.
Date Property Purchaser Tenant(s) Term Certain Price Yield Size sq ft
Aug 2012 3000 Parkway, Solent Business Park, Southampton Claymore Group Zurich Insurance 10 £13,500,000 7.25% 53,000
Jul 2012 Buildings 220 + 230 Cambridge Science Park, Cambridge Legal & General Jagex and Conexant Systems 10.7 £22,250,000 7.20% 75,267
Jun 2012 Unilever House, Leatherhead Office Park, Leatherhead London & Stamford Property Unilever 11.2 £61,150,000 6.85% 179,457
May 2012 Costain House, Vanwall Business Park, Maidenhead Private Middle Eastern Investor Costain Ltd 12.6 £14,700,000 7.00% 36,973
Feb 2012 1 Callaghan Square, Cardiff Capital Trust Eversheds LLP 10.3 £25,500,000 6.50% 93,668
Dec 2011 Quadrant Court, Woking Private UK Investor Surrey County Council 10.3 £17,500,000 7.16% 71,004
Dec 2011 Watson House, London Road, Reigate PRUPIM Towers Watson 9.75 £19,700,000 7.22% 74,269
May 2011 Sir William Siemens Square, Frimley USS Siemens Plc 11 £42,350,000 7.00% 183,868
May 2011 1 Longwalk, Stockley Park, Heathrow RREEF Celgene Europe 10 £26,400,000 7.11% 77,055
Nov 2010 IHG Group HQ Broadwater Park, Denham Gatehouse Bank IHG Group 11.5 £32,650,000 6.25% 97,463
Jul 2010 Napp Buildings, Cambridge Science Park Legal & General Napp Pharmaceutical 9.7 £36,000,000 6.50% 107,994 Print Save Close
Capital Allowances
We understand that there are no remaining capital allowances to be claimed.
VAT
The sale can be treated as a Transfer of a Going Concern.
Proposal
Offers are invited in excess of £42,500,000 (Forty Two Million, Five Hundred Thousand Pounds) for the freehold interest, subject to contract and exclusive of VAT. This reflects a net initial yield of 8.00%, rising to 9.28% in March 2017, allowing for purchaser’s costs at 5.80%.
Further Information
Tom Paton-Smith Tom Woolhouse T: 020 7312 7440 T: 020 7312 7428 M: 07818 012 440 M: 07818 012 428 [email protected] [email protected]
Paul Gummer Simon Knight T: 020 7866 8611 T: 020 7312 7419 M: 07966 784 972 M: 07818 012 419 [email protected] [email protected]
Misrepresentation Act 1967 Montagu Evans LLP for themselves and for the Vendors or Lessors of the property whose Agents they are, give notice that:- (i) The particulars are set out as a general guideline only for the guidance of intending purchasers or lessees and do not constitute the whole or any part of an offer or contract. (ii) All descriptions, dimensions, references to condition and necessary permissions of the use and occupation, and other details are given in good faith without responsibility whatsoever and any intending purchasers or tenants should not rely on them as statements or representations of fact, but must satisfy themselves by inspection or otherwise as to the correctness of each of them. (iii) Neither Montagu Evans LLP nor their employees has any authority to make or give any representation or warranties whatsoever in relation to the property. (iv) Unless otherwise stated, all prices and rents are quoted exclusive of VAT and intending purchasers or lessees must satisfy themselves independently as to the applicable VAT position. (v) All plans and maps provided within the particulars are for identification purposes only. September 2012.