Southern-based Craigard Investments is celebrating yet another successful purchase to add to their growing portfolio through the acquisition of a 50,000 sq ft industrial unit in Leamington Spa. More importantly, the unit has already been pre-let even before the purchase has been completed!

The unit, called ‘Access Point’, is strategically located at the highly successful Tachbrook Business Park. Despite the acquisition not yet being finalised, the site, has already been let to national transport company Canute Haulage on a 10 year lease with at a rent of £252,500 per annum. The tenant hopes to bring new employment to the area which already boasts major employers such as Automotive Products, Ford Motor Company, Lunn Poly (Tui), Wolseley UK and Wright Hassell Solicitors.

Letting the unit so soon has come as a very pleasant surprise to the Managing Director of Craigard, Paul Foster, “This has only happened to me once in my career, so this is a great way to finish a very successful year two for Craigard. Access Point is a great development, with good transport links to the M40 and easy accessibility to the site.”

Agents Evans, Hardy, Bromwich acted for Craigard locally, with Molyneux Rose acting on their behalf nationally.

Access Point, Leamington Spa*(1189KB)

Craigard Investments and Ryon Properties have formed a partnership, Craigard Ryon, to purchase a 100,000 sq ft industrial site in Wellington Park, Burton–On–Trent. This will create more local jobs and attract increased business to the area.

The site was previously owned by Burton–based Technic Tyres, which employed approximately 100 people at its peak, but has now been forced to close. Craigard Ryon will be refurbishing the warehouse, transforming the site into five main units, four of which will be industrial sites with one as office space. The site will be available for sale or let and it is hoped that in excess of 100 new jobs will be created through the new tenants or owners through the industrial site alone, with the office space providing potential for further employment opportunities.

The site has been re-branded ‘Althea‘, and works will start on site in February for completion in June 2007. The units will range in size from 2,351 sq ft to 51,875 sq ft, with the option to occupy one, or even combine two for increased space. The area is already host to some major national employers such as Coors Brewers, Marmite, Littlewoods and Holland & Barrett.

Paul Foster, Managing Director of one of the purchase partners Craigard Investments, commented, “The site is ideally located to major communication networks, and testament to this is the other national organisations which have selected Burton–On–Trent as an ideal location. The refurbishment will transform this site and by dividing it into office units, so there are various options for companies, from letting one or more of the units to purchasing the whole site. We anticipate that this property will attract a lot of attention.”

Donaldsons acted on behalf of Craigard Ryon, and have been retained as marketing agents along with Gadsby Orridge, who are based in Derby.

For more information regarding Althea, please contact Chris Cocks at Donaldsons on 0121 212 1090.

Althea *(587KB)

Craigard Investments, advised by Jones Lang LaSalle and Molyneux Rose, has sold Craigard One, Aylesford Way, Thatcham, Berkshire to a client of Cushman & Wakefield Investors for £7.7 million, reflecting a net initial yield of 5.40%.

Craigard Investments bought the 69,128 sq ft building vacant in August 2005 and subsequently let it to Danish Bacon Company Plc on a 15 year lease with a 10 year break at £440,000 pa, which reflects £6.36 psf.

Cushman & Wakefield acted for Cushman & Wakefield Investors.

Southampton based property company Craigard Investments has let 69,000 sq ft at its site at the former GCi building in Thatcham to DBC Foodservice on a 15 year lease. The building will be used to service DBC customers across Southern England.

The site was Craigard Investments first ever acquisition since its inception in early 2005 and this letting justifies their decision to invest in the Thatcham industrial market.

Paul Foster, CEO of Craigard Investments commented: "Thatcham was one of the first properties that we purchased when Craigard began, and I am delighted that we have now agreed terms with a national company, and one with such impressive links. The plan was to redevelop the site and bring more employment back into the local area, which I am glad will now happen. After an impressive first year result of over £30m in transactions, this deal is an indicator that Craigard is firmly stamping its name in the property market, and will continue to grow over the coming year."

Jones Lang LaSalle and Deal Varney acted on behalf of Craigard and Allsop Matcham on behalf of DBC Foodservice.

A lot can happen over the course of a year, and even more in eight months if you are Paul Foster. He has managed to return to his roots on the south coast from Warwickshire, set up his own business, Craigard Investments, and has now secured four properties worth £15million, creating a large wave in the property investment market. Pretty impressive stuff in a few months.

The acquisition of Hampshire House in Southampton is the latest property addition to the ever-growing client list. A 1960’s block just below Bar Gate, Craigard plan to refurbish and improve the original building. Their tenants include Barclays Bank, Solent Blue Line, Twilo the hairdresser, Universal Recruitment and Reed Employment. "This property showed enormous potential, and I believe that we will be able to sensitively refurbish the existing premises that will generate more business for the tenants, whilst enhancing the High Street" comments Paul Foster.

Hampshire House is not the only investment for this growing business, both the IO Centre on Segensworth Industrial Estate and the Mack premises on Nursling Industrial Estate have also been acquired by Craigard. "Both areas are very busy trading estates, and were a positive move for the company. By investing in these areas, we are steadily moving towards our first year’s goal – the beginnings of a diverse well structured portfolio full of opportunity. It was always going to be tough, but I think we will achieve," adds Paul.

"I have always wanted to move forward quickly with Craigard, but our success in acquiring these properties exceeded all my expectations for 2005."

So what of the future? Well Paul Foster intends to build on the start the Southampton–based company has already made. "I started Craigard Investments with strong market experience and a belief in the great potential offered in the South of England. Our initial success has proved it was the right decision but we are far from complacent; we are always on the lookout for future prospects and we now want to build a robust and substantial long term business."

Craigard Investments, the brainchild of former IM Properties executive Paul Foster and which has only been in existence for two years, has struck a joint venture funding deal with Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), with a target of £50m worth of assets.

The two organisations are now celebrating the sale of their first project together, a 375,000 sq ft building, branded ’Celtica‘ in Sherburn–in–Elmet, near Leeds for nearly £15m to Kingspan, which is set to create initially up to 60 jobs in the local area. Craigard is already reaching new heights, also recently selling the Craigard One building, which is let to DBC Foodservice for £7.7m in Thatcham, Berks. Paul, who returned to his South Coast roots to set up Craigard after 14 years as Estates Director at IM Properties, is already eyeing up potential targets across the region.

Craigard is already making a huge impact in the UK with over £65m in transactions before its second birthday. Though the company is backed by property heavyweights Atkins Properties and Deeley Group, the additional funding from RBS will enable Craigard to mount a more aggressive acquisition campaign, with a target of some five to six major projects of between £3m and £10m over the next 12–18 months. The venture has already kick–started with the acquisition of Avalon, 110,740 sq ft unit in Hampshire’s much sought–after Boyatt Wood Industrial Estate, purchased for £5.5m.

The funding will primarily target the South Coast, but will also look into developments throughout the UK, and see Craigard focusing on a niche area of purchasing, re–letting and selling vacant or short–term lease industrial and office units.

Paul comments, “The funding will be integral to the growth of the company, and there are many potential opportunities available in both the local South–Coast market, and also throughout the UK. With my previous experience in property development, and the initial projects where we have worked together in Sherburn and Eastleigh, it is clear that this partnership can be very successful.”

Hampshire-based Craigard Investments is celebrating a further increase to their portfolio through the purchase of a much sought–after warehouse unit located in Parham Drive, Eastleigh.

The 110,740 sq ft site was most famously occupied in the past by Nintendo, and Craigard will undertake a complete refurbishment before making the site available for purchase or rental.

Eastleigh is a well established location for businesses, with easy access to the M3 and M27 motorways, Southampton Airport Parkway railway station and airport links, which is making this once relatively small town a major business landmark in South Hampshire. The current occupier is Peters & May, a logistics firm that are relocating to reorganise their operations. Lambert Smith Hampton was acting on their behalf and were quick to snap up the site.

Craigard Managing Director, Paul Foster explains his motivations behind the purchase, “We were very lucky to secure a great site such as Parham Drive. Many big organisations have recognised the potential of Eastleigh already, and hopefully the new occupants will bring increased wealth to the area, as well as potential employment opportunities locally.”

Jerry Vigus, Director of Lambert Smith Hampton added, “We acted quickly to secure the property for Craigard Investments, who we have a good working relationship with, and we know that they would be best placed to work on such a project with their experience on previous projects.

We have already had a number of enquiries from interested companies, who potentially would have a warehousing requirement. This building is fairly unique in the area, and offers companies dock and level loading access on a self contained, secure site, and was constructed with a minimum eaves site of 12.5 meters.”

We have been involved in a number of projects with Craigard Investments, and we knew that they would be best placed to.

When previewing a property local surveyors very rarely take to the skies to do so. But this was the case when representatives from several agencies from across Yorkshire were treated to an airplane ride to get a real ‘birds eye’ view of recently refurbished warehouse/industrial units at Celtica, Enterprise Way, Sherburn, near Leeds.

Several agencies were invited to the event, hosted by property developer Craigard Investments who has spent the past 3 months refurbishing the units. Formerly the Eurospace factory, the site consists of two units, one of 157,000 sq ft and the other 215,000 sq ft, with a further seven acres of land available for expansion, up to 500,000 sq ft in total.

"As we have done so much work to the site, we wanted to really show it off to the local surveyors and get them excited about the project," comments Managing Director of Craigard, Paul Foster. "The refurbishment will regenerate a site that has stood vacant for some time and will provide employment opportunities for the local labour market. I hope that the day was useful and enables the agents to fully appreciate how well connected the premises are in terms of access to the motorway network."

The letting of Celtica is being handled by agents Fuller Peiser (Tel. 0114 241 2222) and Gent Visick (Tel. 0113 245 6000). The site is ideally located amongst many large companies including Supercook and Eddie Stobbart, and has easy access to the M1 and A1(M).

Executive Director Paul Foster and his investors Deeley Group and Atkins are celebrating a hugely impressive first year, turning over £30m in transactions.

The company, which celebrated its first birthday last month, has established a niche in the commercial property market, securing five investments throughout the corridor between Weymouth and Brighton and northwards to the M4/M25.

Acquisitions in Thatcham, Southampton, Segensworth and Nursling all indicate areas of potential growth in the sector, and have been key targets for Craigard. Having dealt with local sites, Craigard is now beginning to explore other developments across the country, currently dealing with a 26 acre investment near Leeds in a deal worth £13.25m.

Executive director Paul Foster said, "I am very pleased with our initial progress and I can't believe that 13 months ago the company existed only as an idea; now at the end of our first year, we have made a small profit, which is an incredible feat for any company,"

Successful Midlands businessman and keen sailor, Paul Foster, has moved south to achieve a long held ambition of setting up his own property company close to his family and the sea. This significant step means that his new company, Craigard Investments looks set to become a major player in the south of England as it benefits from Paul’s impressive track record and financial backing by Atkins Holdings and the Deeley Group.

Paul, formerly the executive director of Warwick-based commercial property firm IM Properties, will be based at the Craigard offices at Enterprise House in Ocean Village, Southampton. Craigard’s target is to build a mixed £100m property portfolio over the next three to five years focused on the geographic ‘box’ between Weymouth and Brighton and northwards to the M4/M24. The target will be achieved through development, trading, investment, joint ventures and asset management.

"The project promises to be particularly exciting and already we are well on our way with a number of potential key projects," says Paul. "I have chosen to concentrate on the South as it has a sound business base, great communication and transport links, immense affluence and it’s an area I know well."

"On a personal level, I am looking forward to achieving a much better balance in my life," added Paul. "Coming home has also meant the opportunity to spend more time with my family and enjoy our boat. Although a lovely area, nowhere in England is further from the sea than Warwickshire! It’s hard to beat the south for great business opportunities and a superb standard of living."

Well known within the commercial property arena with an impressive track record at IM Properties spanning 15 years, Paul is looking to capitalise on his enviable list of contacts. In the last three years alone he closed on over £1billion of transactions and it is this wealth of experience that has already attracted Atkins Holdings Ltd and Deeley Group Ltd. Both are now on board. No surprise then that the Craigard team have an incredible track record of consistently good stock selection.

For more information on Craigard, please visit the website on www.craigard.biz or call Craigard on 07721 399 945.