Acquisition
AGROWING Stoke-on-trent property company has expanded its portfolio after taking ownership of a 50,000 sq ft industrial estate in Staffordshire. Hanley-based Sandyford Properties has completed the offmarket acquisition of the Riverside Industrial Estate in Rugeley.
The Power Station Road site – which boasts 24 units – had been under private ownership for 29 years, but it was acquired by Sandyford as part of its long-term growth plans for the area. Following the deal, the company plans to invest in a number of improvements across the site including updating the appearance of the estate.
James Lewis, head of asset management at Sandyford Properties, said: “Riverside is an excellent addition to our portfolio. The estate offers functional workspace at affordable rents and is let to a wide range of local occupiers.
“This is our second acquisition in 2021 and we hope there will be more to follow.” Sandyford Properties lease commercial properties across Stoke-on-trent, Staffordshire and Cheshire and offer a reactive property maintenance service from its base in Leek Road.
The company owns a number of sites in the Potteries including City Park Trading Estate in Fenton, Queens Parade in Newcastle, Joiners Square Industrial Estate in Hanley and Trentham Trade Park.
It has previously owned the Newfield Industrial Estate in Tunstall, but last month, it sold the site to Network Space after 21 years of ownership – in a deal worth £6.7 million.
The acquisition of Riverside Industrial Estate follows Sandyford’s acquisition of four industrial parks and two flexible workspace sites from Brymau Estates.
The sites – all located near to Saltney, Chester – amount to more than 230,000 sq ft and accommodate more than 90 occupiers.
At the time, a spokesman for Sandyford Properties said: “The deal is a significant one for us because until now we had been focussed principally on multi-let industrial assets in Staffordshire.
“Our home area is still critically important to us and will continue to be somewhere where we look to grow and expand. However, Brymau provides opportunity to grow our customer base in a new location where there is strong demand from both national and local occupiers.”