Grosvenor is marketing a 125-year leasehold interest on the newly redeveloped office and retail building at 20 Grosvenor Street.
The best-in-class office was let to KPMG in 2014 on a 15-year lease. The building also includes two retail units, comprising The Refinery barber and spa and a café. Grosvenor intends to recycle sale proceeds back into its London estate, which has a £1bn long-term development pipeline underway.
20 Grosvenor Street is a short walk from Bond Street, Oxford Circus and Green Park stations and will benefit from the arrival of Crossrail at Bond Street from 2018. It sits centrally in Grosvenor’s Mayfair estate, which is undergoing a transformation through revamped public spaces and new shops, galleries, hotels and restaurants, including the world-renown Gagosian Gallery, which opened in Grosvenor Hill last October and the Beaumont hotel, which opened in Brown Hart Gardens in late 2014.
Craig McWilliam, Executive Director, London Estate at Grosvenor Britain & Ireland said: “We intend to use the proceeds from 20 Grosvenor Street to continue Mayfair’s evolution, investing in projects which enhance the area as a great place to live, work and visit. 20 Grosvenor Street is a very attractive office building. It demonstrates Grosvenor’s ability to transform outmoded heritage buildings into beautiful, functional office and retail space suitable for world-leading businesses. Successful developments like 20 Grosvenor Street help to maintain and enhance the West End’s contribution to London’s economy.”
The redevelopment of 20 Grosvenor Street completed last year and was designed by award-winning architects Flanagan Lawrence. It amalgamated numbers 18 and 20 Grosvenor Street, originally built in 1725, to create grade A office accommodation over six floors, together with two retail units on ground and lower ground level. Grosvenor will retain the building’s freehold as part of its 300 acre London estate in Mayfair and Belgravia.
Office availability in the West End has fallen from 4.1 million sq ft at the start of 2015 to 3.2 million sq ft in Q4 2015. This represents a vacancy rate of 3.4%, the lowest level since 1989.
Knight Frank is advising Grosvenor.