SPRING 2013 ISSUE SIX WWW.GERALDEVE.COM

All Change at Victoria Colette O’Shea maps out LandSec’s exciting vision

AN IN-DEPth LOOk At EUROPE’S NO. 1 VISItOR AttRACtION OPERAtOR

Uk Commitment An exclusive interview with Japanese developer MEC

All Aboard? ENGAGE looks at both sides of the hS2 debate

EXCLUSIVE FEAtURE A LONG tERM VIEWA rare interview with Hiroyuki Arimura, the UK Managing Director of MEC UK

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Gearing-up for Glasgow 2014

EDItOR’S NOtE

Welcome to the Spring 2013 edition of ENGAGE.

After a particularly dreary Winter I’m sure we are all looking forward to the rejuvenating growth of Spring. Green shoots may still be sadly rare in the economy but this edition has plenty to give us good cheer.

We take a look behind the scenes of Europe’s largest operator of visitor attractions – Merlin Entertainments. Merlin is rapidly expanding and is now second only to Disney globally. We discover that real estate expertise is a key element in Merlin’s magic growth formula.

the international theme is continued with an exclusive interview with the London head of Japan’s biggest developer Mitsubishi Estate. hiroyuki Arimura, Managing Director of MEC Uk, outlines the history of his firm and details how it has built up a £1bn Uk portfolio. the company had a baptism of fire, with one of its first projects, delivering Paternoster Square, by St Paul’s in the City. But rather than be put off the Uk, Arimura explains MEC is very much here for the long term.

Colette O’Shea, Land Securities’ head of Development, maps out the company’s masterplan underpinning the dramatic transformation of Victoria. She reveals how Gerald Eve’s planning and development team have been instrumental in its success.

ENGAGE also takes us on an eclectic journey via the hS2 debate, to Dublin where we find out a new alliance with Murphy Mulhall is already reaping rewards for clients, to Glasgow where we examine the impact of the Commonwealth Games in 2014 and to Manchester, where we hear how the firm is planning for regional growth.

An Engaging vision of the future for us all to share.

Lynn Levy – Editoreditor@geraldeve.com

04RAtEDLICENCED tO thRILLMerlin Entertainment Gerald Eve’s most thrilling client

02NEWS UPDAtECatching up with what has been happening throughout Gerald Eve

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CONtENtS

02 NEWS UPDAtE 04 RAtED LICENCED tO thRILL 07 PUttING VICtORIA BACk ON thE MAP10 ON tRACk FOR A hIGh SPEED FUtURE12 A LONG tERM VIEW16 ALLIANCE RE-EVALUAtES DUBLIN’S FAIR CIty18 PLANNING FOR GROWth 20 LEt thE GAMES BEGIN22 RELAtIVE VALUES 24 MARkEt FACtS

07PUttING VICtORIA BACk ON thE MAPLand Securities propelling Victoria forward once more

18 PLANNING FOR GROWthExtending to the regions with ambitious expansion plans

For more information contact Robert Fourt rfourt@geraldeve.com tel. 020 7333 6202

A strategic alliance with leading Dublin-based boutique commercial property agent

16ALLIANCE RE-EVALUAtES DUBLIN’S FAIR CIty

RELAtIVE VALUESENGAGE talks to Gerald Eve partner Simon Prichard and his mother Nica

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ON tRACk FOR A hIGh SPEED FUtURE10

Debate among proponents and opponents of HS2

20LEt thE GAMES BEGIN

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VALUING tRANqUILIty

UK based Tranquility Resorts has asked Gerald Eve to provide valuations on a newly completed development in the Dominican Republic. Located in Barahona, a designated tourist

development zone situated in the south west of the country, the new high end mixed use resort includes a five star hotel, spa, luxury villas and condominiums.

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LOCAtION, LOCAtION

Ilkley-based private investment group, Glentrool Estates, has disposed of its freehold interest in a multi-let office building at 14 South Parade, Leeds.

The 26,000 sq ft building was acquired by the Welbeck Estates Company for £5.1m, reflecting a net initial yield in the region of 6.75%. Commenting on the sale, Gerald Eve partner Gary Howes, said: “This transaction shows there’s still appetite for well-let regional buildings in the right location.”

PLANNING SUCCESSGerald Eve’s planning and development team were advisers on the recent application for student accommodation at Urbanest’s Waterloo tower.

Permission was granted at the end of January for a 19 storey, 1,000 plus bed scheme that will include a 65,000 sq ft school and 4,000 sq ft of space for start up businesses, a gym and a swimming pool.

LARGESt ESSEX LEttING FOR A DECADE

Leading financial services company Cofunds, advised by Gerald Eve, is to relocate its Chelmsford office to Witham, Essex after signing a new lease on 70,000 sq ft Maryland House.

Extensive refurbishment works are planned prior to the relocation of Cofunds’ 600 staff. Isabel Parker, associate at Gerald Eve, said: ”This is the largest office letting in Essex for a decade, demonstrating the firm’s faith in Essex as a place to do business.”

StOP PRESSA BRACE OF APPROVALS

Approval has been received on a brace of recent planning applications, on which Gerald Eve were advisers, for Legal & General’s office and residential developments at 7-10 Hanover Square and 103-109 Wardour Street, both in London’s West End.

FRESh APPEAL

Morrisons, the UK’s fourth largest supermarket group, has instructed Gerald Eve to provide rates appeal advice on nearly 50% of its portfolio located in the East, Wales & West and London & South East.

The instruction, which commenced in October,will cover trading stores and includes a nationwide instruction of its growing convenience business M. Local.

PRIME INDUStRIAL tAkE-UP FALLS 9%Take-up of large industrial space during 2012 was 9% lower than the previous year, with economic uncertainty and a lack of suitable space the main drivers behind the fall, according to the latest Prime Logistics report from Gerald Eve. But with availability standing at just 12.4%, it is expected that the

constrained supply of prime space will lead to rental growth over the course of 2014. Supply of new and refurbished stock currently stands at 13m sq ft, its lowest level since 2006. Gerald Eve’s Prime Logistics report is available to download at www.geraldeve.com

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It IS EASy tO MISUSE thE WORD thRILLING BUt WIthOUt DOUBt MERLIN IS GERALD EVE’S MOSt thRILLING CLIENt.

and sold Merlin to Blackstone Group for about £110m. Blackstone negotiated to buy control of LEGOLAND for about £250m and then merged it with Merlin. Under Blackstone, Merlin went on to buy Gardaland, Italy’s leading theme park, and then The Tussauds Group, owner of the Madame Tussauds wax museums, for £1bn.

The Tussauds Group as a separate entity ceased to exist, with control of its attractions, including Madame Tussauds, The London Eye, Chessington World of Adventures, Alton Towers, Thorpe Park, Warwick Castle and Heide Park in Germany among others, passing to Merlin.

Merlin had hoped to go public in early 2010, but market turbulence postponed those plans. Instead, a new private equity partner CVC Capital Partners, bought into the company joining Blackstone; KIRKBI, a Danish family trust that owns LEGO, and the management team as shareholders. CVC paid a price that valued Merlin at £2.25bn – more than six times what Merlin and LEGOLAND together were worth when Blackstone acquired them five years earlier. Mackenzie attributes Merlin’s remarkable success to a strict focus on a six point growth driver plan.

The first point is existing estate growth. “We are constantly investing in a ‘compelling proposition’ for each of our attractions to avoid people becoming bored and to stay ahead of the competition,” says Mackenzie. “Take SEA LIFE, we have a black box exhibit which constantly evolves. It might be a gloriously colourfully lit display of jellyfish or exciting Japanese spider crabs which might rotate round the UK, Germany and Italy.”

“We are also constantly monitoring key performance indicators such as customer satisfaction and value for money.”Continued >>

Merlin Entertainments is the number one visitor attraction operator in Europe and number two in the world only

after Disney. You could be forgiven for not having heard of the holding company, which is headquartered in Poole. But you will surely have heard of many of its brands including Madame Tussauds, The Dungeons, Alton Towers Resort, LEGOLAND, SEA LIFE, Blackpool Tower, and the EDF Energy London Eye.

Merlin’s rapidly expanding portfolio will boast 100 attractions by mid 2013, seven hotels and two holiday villages. It is in 21 countries spread across Europe, North America, Australasia and Asia. It attracts well over 46m visitors annually, and employs 20,000 staff.

Real estate expertise plays a crucial role in driving the company’s successful growth strategy. ENGAGE met the two

key property players Nick Mackenzie, former Property Director and now Managing Director of resort theme parks and Neil Haskins, Group Property Director.

Their enthusiasm for their jobs is infectious: “It’s a very unusual day job. Building rollercoasters or aquariums is a lot more fun than office blocks,” says Mackenzie who reveals he enjoys cult celebrity status amongst his kids and their friends.

Both Mackenzie and Haskins are chartered surveyors with extensive experience of the leisure sector. Haskins was previously at Gerald Eve and Whitbread. Mackenzie had been in property teams with Bass and Allied Domecq.

Merlin has been a long established rating client of Gerald Eve and has developed a particularly strong rapport with Charles Wilford co-head of Gerald Eve’s leisure team. Mackenzie says: “It is important for us to get the best quality advice from people we get along with and who can align with our values.”

Haskins adds: “In leisure the Gerald Eve rating team is the best in class. It is very important for us to have people in the team who we know we can completely rely on to secure the right deal for us.”

Merlin’s meteoric growth began back in December 1998, when Nick Varney (CEO), Andrew Carr (CFO) and the senior management team of Vardon Attractions completed a MBO to form Merlin Entertainments Group Ltd. with the backing of the private equity firm Apax Partners. Apax then sold the company to Hermes Private Equity, in 2003.

When the LEGOLAND theme parks came up for sale, Varney wanted to buy them but Hermes did not want to invest more

Nick MackenzieManaging Director of resort theme parks

Neil HaskinsGroup Property Director

Photography supplied by Merlin WWW.GERALDEVE.COM

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This allows the sale of combination tickets and creates a one stop shop for London tourists. On a smaller scale Manchester’s Trafford Centre will house a SEA LIFE centre and a LEGOLAND Discovery centre. Other major clusters operate in Berlin, Amsterdam, Sydney and others are emerging in many other cities as new sites open.

However, one of the most interesting UK cluster examples is in Blackpool where Merlin has had a SEA LIFE Centre for many years. Then, in 2011 the company took over both an existing wax works and rebranded it Madame Tussauds; and responsibility for the redevelopment and management of the Blackpool Tower, adding a Dungeon and rebranding a significantly upgraded observation deck, the Blackpool Tower Eye. Merlin worked very closely with the council who own the buildings and who benefit from major brands investment and sophisticated marketing; “A true public private regeneration project success in my view,” says Mackenzie.

The third growth driver is transforming theme parks to resorts. “All but two of our sites have or are about to have accommodation; and/or second gate attractions to encourage multiday visits and overnight stays. We are increasingly seeking to service the short break market. An important feature of this is that the integration of the hotel and the park must be a seamless experience for the visitor. This is why we operate the hotels ourselves,” says Mackenzie.

LEGOLAND Windsor, which was financed through a sale-and-leaseback was the first new build hotel for the group. It opened last year, and around May this year a 250-room hotel will open at LEGOLAND California, beside which is also a SEA LIFE centre and a LEGOLAND water park. Plans are also well advanced

for a hotel in 2014 at the latest LEGOLAND Resort to open – LEGOLAND Malaysia.

The fourth driver is group synergies. Marketing initiatives such as the Merlin Annual Pass – now available in the UK, Germany and USA, which allows entry to multiple attractions. By cross selling, it can take full advantage of sophisticated national and international marketing strategies and exploit procurement synergies and economies of scale.

The fifth element is the development of LEGOLAND parks which Mackenzie says they look to do every three to five years. In 2011, Merlin opened LEGOLAND Florida and last year it launched LEGOLAND Malaysia in partnership with the government. There are currently six LEGOLAND sites – in Windsor, Billund (Denmark), Gunzburg (Germany); California; Florida and Malaysia.

The final growth driver in the plan is strategic acquisitions. The group has made big purchases like the LEGOLAND parks, and the Tussauds group. Medium ones such as the Sydney Attractions Group and most recently the Living and Leisure Australia Group; as well as small one-off’s like the London Aquarium. “An increasing focus on Asia Pacific has meant we have made recent acquisitions there that have significantly increased the levels of profitability and visitor numbers,” adds Mackenzie.

“As you can see real estate angles feature in almost all the growth drivers and this understanding cascades through the whole group so that the operational business and the property strategy are totally aligned,” says Haskins. For some of us that rare paradigm is almost as thrilling a proposition as any rollercoaster ride Thorpe Park could offer.

For more information contact cwilford@geraldeve.comTel. 020 7333 6215

The second is what Merlin calls Midway rollout. “Midways are brands like SEA LIFE, Madame Tussauds, Dungeons, LEGOLAND Discovery and the Eye – primarily indoor 2-3 hour visits rather than whole day destinations” explains Mackenzie. “We seek to roll out between five and seven new sites globally per year. Our search for new sites will continue in Europe, the US, Asia and Australasia. This year will see the opening of our 100th attraction – which in fact will be a new SEA LIFE in Manchester – and our 50th around the world. We will also open our 14th Madame Tussauds in Tokyo and our first attraction in Canada – a LEGOLAND Discovery Centre.”

Part of the strategy is to ‘cluster’ Midway attractions in major cities – providing both operational and visitor benefits. Take London, on the Southbank, the London Eye currently sits close to the SEA LIFE Aquarium and on 1 March an exciting new London Dungeon joined them in the basement of County Hall, relocating from its original site near London Bridge.

We have a planned approach to consistently investing in a ‘compelling proposition’ for each of our attractions to avoid people becoming bored and to stay ahead of the competition.

PUttING VICtORIA BACk ON thE MAPVictoria has always been a little bit anonymous. Its drab monolithic civil service office blocks have almost drained the area of its sense of place. But Land Securities has set out to change all this, to propel Victoria forward once more into one of London’s best-known districts able to challenge for a space on a future Monopoly board.

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Colette O’SheaHead of Development for Land Securities

you feel Victoria had slightly lost its way,” says Colette O’Shea, Head of Development for Land Securities’ London portfolio,

“but now we’re really making up for lost time.” Despite the considerable natural advantages of superb transport links and nearby attractions like Buckingham Palace and Parliament, it was previously somewhere most people passed through.

“People came in, worked for the Government, ate at the staff canteen and left again,” continues O’Shea. “If they needed anything, they popped to the Army & Navy department store at lunchtime. There was no public realm to encourage people to hang around, so they didn’t. We’ve now got a real opportunity to change that.”

Lisa Webb, a leading planning partner at Gerald Eve, agrees: “When I first started working on Land Securities’ schemes in 2004, Victoria was a district primarily made up of 1960’s slab blocks with little public realm. But its new schemes will bring world class architecture, public spaces and a vibrant mix of uses to the area.”

Land Securities has operated in the area for 50 years. But its pace of activity has dramatically accelerated. It now boasts a portfolio in Victoria of 2.5m sq ft achieved through a series of strategic investments, new development and refurbishment.

Mixed-use development, enhanced public realm and a much more heterogeneous tenant mix are at the core of Land Securities’ master-plan to transform Victoria. This plan has evolved in close co-operation with Westminster council.

Cardinal Place, completed in 2006, was the first piece of Land Securities’ new jigsaw. It consists of three buildings on Victoria Street opposite Westminster Cathedral, and was designed by EPR Architects. Continued >>

If It was during the queen’s Jubilee last year that we realised just how visible Victoria is. As the flotilla made its way down the thames, pictures were being broadcast across the world. that’s a huge responsibility on our shoulders and informs much of what we do.

Kings Gate is part of a wider development that features new public realm and thoroughfares, gardens, and 45,000 sq ft of retail and restaurants which accompany its neighbouring 188,000 sq ft office scheme, The Zig Zag Building. It is due for completion in 2015.

Another achievement was perhaps more under-stated, the comprehensive refurbishment of the distinctive 123 Victoria Street, which underwent a major internal and external transformation. The new building features a triple height atrium, new clear glass windows and highly efficient floorplates. The external upgrade has included the addition of decked terraces. It attracted tenants such as Jimmy Choo and CDC.

Meanwhile 62 Buckingham Gate has been garnering the ‘Wow’ factor with a radical 11-storey prism-like structure conceived by arcitects Pelli Clarke Pelli and Swanke Hayden & Connell. It will provide 256,970 sq ft of office space and 15,250 sq ft of retail space when it completes in May.

But it is Victoria Circle that is being heralded as the most dramatic catalyst for the area. This £1bn scheme is a 50:50 joint venture between LandSec and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.

The £200m development was built directly over the District & Circle Line Underground. The buildings rest on rubber shock absorbers to prevent vibrations from the passing trains. The scheme includes 550,000 sq ft of office space and 100,000 sq ft of retail.

It was particularly pioneering in the area as it was the first development to bring contemporary retail space to the area – “retail space that was so popular we could have let it twice over,” remembers O’Shea – and it attracted new private-sector office occupiers such as Microsoft, EDF and Experian.

The scheme silenced the doubts of the ‘nay-sayers’ by showcasing exactly what could be achieved, and in many ways it has become a template for the company’s future schemes in Victoria.

Land Securities’ commitment to diversifying Victoria has also been demonstrated in residential projects at Wellington House, Wilton Plaza and Kings Gate. Kings Gate designed by Patrick Lynch, offers 100 apartments, studios and penthouses offering views of Buckingham Palace and the Royal Parks.

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It is set for the island site opposite Victoria Station bounded by Bressenden Place, Victoria Street and Buckingham Palace Road.

Five new buildings will be built. The first phase will be delivered in 2016, the final two phases in 2018. When it completes it will provide 910,000 sq ft of residential, office, retail and public amenity.

“It’s going to be the jewel in Victoria’s crown, a real game-changer,” says O’Shea. “What was once a hotch-potch of tatty buildings and tacky souvenir shops will become somewhere to be enjoyed and experienced by workers, residents and visitors alike. Cardinal Place has shown the demand there is for cohesive schemes that bring in new occupiers, retailers, bar and restaurant operators, and Victoria Circle will go a long way towards doing just that.”

Demolition work started in late 2012, but the scheme has been a long time in the creation. “It is a very complex site to develop,” continues O’Shea, “requiring its own masterplan and extensive work just to assemble it. Compulsory purchase powers were required. We had to make 260 separate possessions, which was obviously a huge undertaking.”

Gerald Eve led the planning and development work on Victoria Circle and has worked closely with Land Securities on evolving all of its recent Victoria projects. “There is no doubt Gerald Eve has earned its place on our Victoria projects. I’ve worked with Lisa Webb and Hugh Bullock for a long time. Lisa’s got an amazing can do attitude. She takes a problem and just simply keeps going until it’s worked through. Working with Hugh is also great on intellectual challenges, the most difficult planning things I’ve ever done, and those I’m most proud of, I’ve done with Hugh.”

Site assembly is not the only obstacle to overcome. Webb adds: “All of Land Securities’ sites have had their own complexities. These include developing around listed buildings, in strategic views and sensitive views from the Royal Parks, close to existing residential neighbourhoods, and, in the case of Victoria Circle, having to provide significant transport benefits whilst addressing the relevant mixed use and affordable housing policies. It has been exciting and rewarding to work on the new buildings and places they are creating, and now that the majority of them are underway, to see how an area can change.”

Take into account the ongoing work by Transport for London, which is creating a new ticket hall and entrances to Victoria Underground station, and commuters can see the transformation of the western end of Victoria Street progress on an almost daily basis.

“London has traditionally evolved in two ways,” says O’Shea. “Either estates have created large, intricately-planned new areas such as Belgravia, or development has been piecemeal and on a site-by-site basis. This second, more organic process, is how Land Securities has addressed Victoria, and it’s an approach that we think pays dividends.

“It was during the Queen’s Jubilee, with all the cameras at the Palace that we realised just how visible Victoria is; pictures were being broadcast across the world. That’s a huge responsibility on our shoulders and informs much of what we do. For example, we will shortly be applying for permission to re-clad the 1960s Portland House tower to help make it far more contemporary and in-keeping with the new Victoria.”

“If something is visible to the outside world, we think it has to look stunning. Westminster Council wants good architecture and this is a value Land Securities shares.

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We spend a lot of time selecting the right architects for each scheme.”

“When you look at the advantages Victoria holds, it should be as well-known as Mayfair or Bond Street, but the opportunities need to be realised.

Freshly-developed offices will bring new employers to the area, while top-quality retail and leisure space will attract brands and restaurant operators that will encourage people to spend their leisure time here. And crucially, a more extensive, better-managed and properly joined-up public realm is required to create a sense of place. Get this right, and Victoria can regain its rightful place in the world’s consciousness.”

For more information contact lwebb@geraldeve.comTel. 020 7333 6225

BUCkINGhAMGAtE

When you look at the advantages Victoria holds, it should be as well known as Mayfair or Bond Street, but the opportunities need to be realised.

kINGS GAtERESIDENtIAL

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large countries such as the USA or China or for improving links between neighbouring continental countries such as France, Switzerland, Spain and Italy. However, many argue that this level of infrastructure is unnecessary in the UK, a small island whose major cities are fairly close together and which is already served by a dense network of conventional trains.

As with any long term infrastructure project of this nature, the debate will continue to simmer alongside the various consultations and legislation that are essential to the process, in addition to a number of judicial reviews already underway.

Draft safeguarding areas published by the Government at the end of last year reveal a vast area that could be facing a compulsory purchase in order to deliver the new railway. The area potentially

RAthER LIkE thE WEAthER It SEEMS thAt tALkING, OR MORE LIkELy COMPLAINING, ABOUt tRAINS IS A PECULIARLy BRItISh PAStIME. LIttLE WONDER, IN thAt CASE, thAt LASt yEAR’S ANNOUNCEMENt OF thE £32BN SUPER-FASt (hS2) RAILWAy LINE FROM LONDON tO MANChEStER AND LEEDS VIA BIRMINGhAM IGNItED FIERCE DEBAtE AMONG PROPONENtS AND OPPONENtS OF thE PROJECt.

the reasons in favour of HS2 were trumpeted by the coalition government upon its launch in January 2012. Then transport

minister Justine Greening declared it a “once-in-generation opportunity that would deliver prosperity and regenerate the regions”. There are compelling reasons to support the project; good infrastructure creates jobs, stimulates economies and encourages both tourism and inward investment. And the prospect of futuristic bullet trains scything across the country is, to many, an alluring one.

Proponents point to other practical reasons to favour a new high-speed line; not only will it relieve pressure on the already congested West Coast main line, but it will also dramatically reduce journey times and improve links between London and northern regions.

Yet despite enjoying cross-party support and a strong lobby group in favour of HS2, there are rumblings of discontent within each party and a growing number of opponents among the general public. These opponents say the scheme is unnecessary, too expensive and environmentally damaging.

Communities on the proposed routes are unsurprisingly worried about the environmental and economic impact of the project. Writing recently in the Daily Telegraph, Conservative MP for Chesham and Amersham, Cheryl Gillan, labelled the project “a cancer that will cost our country dear”.

Other concerns about the project have centred on the lack of economic evidence to support it. There is clearly good reason for utilising high-speed rail to contract

affected covers a strip up to 120m wide along the 140 mile route between London Euston and Birmingham and large areas of land in both cities. Included within this are around 800 homes, major development sites in London and Birmingham, operating businesses, strategic residential development sites in Buckinghamshire and huge swathes of countryside in between.

Virginia Blackman, CPO specialist and partner in Gerald Eve’s planning and development team, says: “We know that many potentially affected parties had been awaiting the safeguarding consultation hoping that it would provide some certainty, but that hasn’t proved to be the case. Not only is HS2 Ltd safeguarding large areas of land, but it is also reserving the right to acquire more land outside those limits if required. This has just made life more uncertain,

particularly for those residents, businesses and landowners on the fringes of the safeguarded areas.”

In the meantime, what does this mean for homeowners, businesses, developers and investors who could be affected by the delivery of HS2? “The key thing is to engage as early as possible” says Vicky Fowler, a partner in Berwin Leighton Paisner’s planning and environment team. “Although the delivery dates of 2026 and 2032 seem a long way away, it is vital that affected parties start reviewing their position now”, she says.

Fowler also encourages adopting a pragmatic approach from the off. “Although anything that affects a person’s home, livelihood or investment is inevitably going to be emotive it is important to be rational”, she says. “Treat the process as a means

of mitigating HS2’s negative impact, or capitalising on the opportunities it presents.”

Gerald Eve partner and Head of Compensation, Tony Chase, recognises the ‘blight’ which the proposals may cause to many property owners and occupiers but is keen to point out that HS2 doesn’t inevitably present a negative scenario for all those affected by it. “Some businesses and landowners may even stand to benefit from the opportunities it brings, especially within city centres” he says. “But it is important also that they protect their position from an early stage so if there is an impact on the property value or business, they are properly compensated for it”.

For more information contact tchase@geraldeve.comTel. 020 7333 6282

WWW.GERALDEVE.COMImage supplied by hS2 Limited

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because of its style of architecture it quickly became known as the ‘London Block.’

Mitsubishi Estate still retains a dominant stake in the area by owning or managing 34 buildings with a net floor area of 181,910 sq ft. Marunouchi has been transformed into the most prestigious office location in Japan over a number of phases. MEC started its third phase of redevelopment in 1998 which has seen the area dramatically change from being dominated by corporate and financial occupiers to a mixed-use, multi-faceted area which now also brings in retail, hospitality and cultural amenities.

As Mitsubishi Estate has built up its Japanese holdings it has also looked outwards. In 1972 it set up Mitsubishi Estate New York Incorporated, which owns a portfolio of assets in Washington DC and San Francisco.

Following the purchase of Atlas House, EC2 in 1985 Mitsubishi Estate established MEC UK in 1986. Singapore followed in Continued >>

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and engineering firm in Japan, by number of certified architects and engineers.

Closer to home in 2010 through its US subsidiary, The Rockefeller Group, Mitsubishi Estate acquired London based investment management firm, Europa Capital.

Arimura explains Mitsubishi Estate’s history is synonymous with that of Marunouchi, an area which sits between the Imperial Palace and Tokyo train station that is now the core business district in central Tokyo. Mitsubishi Estate bought the former 300 acres military training ground in 1890 for £6,000.

The deal showed a prescience akin to that of Dutchman Peter Minuit, who in 1626 bought Manhattan Island from the Native Americans with some trinkets worth 60 Dutch guilders. It is now home to nearly 10% of companies listed on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Japan’s first modern office building, Mitsubishi Ichigokan, was completed in 1894. A series of three storey red brick buildings quickly followed. Interestingly

In a rare exclusive interview with Hiroyuki Arimura, the UK Managing Director of MEC UK, ENGAGE learnt more about the company’s history.

How it built up its £1bn UK portfolio and its future strategy. The interview was held at its City headquarters on the 17th floor of the Richard Rogers-designed, glass-sided 88 Wood Street, EC2.

Misubishi Estate, a public company listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange is the power house in Japanese real estate, it is Japan’s largest property company with a market capitalisation of ¥3,078,339m (£21,408.23m as of 31st January 2013).

It’s worth looking at some of its subsidiaries. Its residential development arm Mitsubishi Jisho Residence Company, is the largest Japanese apartment developer in terms of numbers of units sold per year. Mitsubishi Estate is also a 60% shareholder of Chelsea Japan Company, the leading outlet shopping centre developer/operator in Japan.While another subsidiary, Mitsubishi Jisho Sekkei Incorporated, is the second largest architectural design

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MANy JAPANESE DEVELOPERS AND INVEStORS hAVE COME AND GONE FROM LONDON BUt ONE JAPANESE COMPANy hAS MADE A SIGNIFICANt COMMItMENt tO thE Uk, WIth A tRACk RECORD OF CONSIStENtLy DELIVERING SOME OF thE CAPItAL’S FINESt BUILDINGS – MItSUBIShI EStAtE COMPANy.

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Hiroyuki Arimura UK Managing Director of MEC UK

•GraduatedinEconomicsandAccounting

•JoinedMECin1980beginninghiscareer with the company in residential development

•CametoLondonin2011asMEC’sUK Managing Director

•Marriedwithtwochildrenandlivesin High Street Kensington

•Heisakeentennisplayer

Paternoster Square Tokyo’s London and Marunouchi Buildings Victoria Street

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occupied by Deutsche Bank to create what Prichard calls “one of the best sites in the City.” It sits in an area the City has designated suitable for tall buildings and that would be equally attractive for financial and insurance tenants.

In the meantime, MEC’s development team will be kept busy with a new 240,000 sq ft scheme for River Plate House on Finsbury Circus, EC2 which features 19,000 sq ft column free floor plates, behind a partially retained facade.

It gained planning approval in November 2012 and MEC gains control of the site in September 2013. Gerald Eve advised on planning.

Looking forward Arimura says that MEC would “like to increase its £1bn UK portfolio to around £1.5bn by 2020 by selling some of its holdings and acquiring new standing investments and development projects. Our advantage is that we have ready access to development equity, funded off our balance sheet.” In January 2013, MEC announced it had acquired Vince Cable’s Department of Business’ 339,989 sq ft headquarters in Victoria, a longer term development project, which is let to the Government until 2021.

“We are here to stay,” says Arimura. “The personnel may change but our long term development ethos will not.”

For more information contact sprichard@geraldeve.comTel. 020 7333 6225

Once more MEC tested Tokyo’s nerve as agents questioned the wisdom of continuing the development in the face of the financial crash in 2008. “It was similar to when we completed the new Marunouchi Building, a 37-storey Tokyo tower after the dotcom boom in 2002. But like then we knew that a top quality building in a strong location will always let well,” says Arimura. That long term commitment once again bore fruit. Central Saint Giles is now home to NBC Universal, Google, Mindshare, Specific Media and Burson & Marsteller and it went on to win ‘Best of the Best’ category and the national award for ‘Best Commercial Workspace’ at the British Council For Offices (BCO) Awards 2011.

Simon Prichard who is head of Gerald Eve’s City team says: “When you look at Paternoster Square and Central Saint Giles there is no doubt that MEC has a fantastic track record of conceiving and delivering great schemes with a fantastic sense of place.”

This looks set to continue. In 2011 in an audacious piece of site assembly MEC bought insurance company Tokio Marine’s 150 Leadenhall Street and 6-8 Bishopsgate, a 20-storey tower site

When you look at Paternoster Square and Central Saint Giles there is no doubt that MEC has a fantastic track record of conceiving and delivering great schemes with a fantastic sense of place.

Sachs and CB Richard Ellis. What was a run down area, became a completely rejuvenated, lively new square, in many ways like a miniature Marunouchi.

“Our biggest lesson was that development in London is not straightforward. But the advantage of the Paternoster project was that we got to know many of the best people working in the central London market.”

Today MEC retains ownership of Warwick Court which is let to Goldman Sachs and 10 Paternoster Square, home to the London Stock Exchange. It also manages the William Whitfield-designed square, which is arguably one of the City’s most impressive areas of public realm.

“We have no specific plan to sell these assets but that does not mean we will hold them forever. We have affection for this scheme but no business decision can be based on that, and we will sell when the timing is right,” says Arimura.

After Paternoster Square, MEC jointly developed Bow Bells House (close to Gerald Eve’s City office in EC2) with Mitsubishi Corporation in 2006. It also acquired the mid-term development opportunity River Plate House, Finsbury Circus, EC2. In 2010 MEC sold the handsome 164,473 sq ft Bow Bells House which was let to Bank of Ireland and Aberdeen Asset Management for more than £140m.

Whilst MEC was previously known only for City schemes, this was to change in 2007 when it became a joint venture partner with Legal & General in its Central Saint Giles speculative scheme close to Centre Point in London’s West End. The vibrantly coloured Central Saint Giles, designed by Renzo Piano, is an exemplar of excellence in office-led, mixed-use development consisting of 400,000 sq ft of grade-A office space, 56 private apartments, 53 affordable homes and nine new restaurants and café bars arranged around a new courtyard piazza. Gerald Eve advised on planning.

Our biggest lesson was that development in London is not straightforward. But the advantage of the Paternoster project was that we got to know many of the best people working in the central London market.

2008 and in 2011 a Shanghai office was established in China. Looking forward Arimura says Mitsubishi is also looking at “continental Europe and the broader Asia Pacific including “Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia.”

Turning back to the UK, MEC’s first major project was a baptism of fire when in 1990 it joined Park Tower and Greycoat in the redevelopment of Paternoster Square, by St Paul’s which turned out to be the City’s most convoluted and daunting planning and site assembly saga, spanning more than a dozen years, and carried out in the full glare of the national media thanks to the intervention of Prince Charles. The other two developers threw in their cards in the mid-1990s.

But MEC decided to stick despite concern from Tokyo. “Yes there were a lot of problems but the ethos of Mitsubishi is to take the long term view. We saw the benefits of staying and never envisaged leaving London,” says Arimura.

With some understatement he says: “We completed the complex redevelopment of this prestigious site in 2003, having successfully pre-let the three buildings to the London Stock Exchange, Goldman

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Central St. Giles

EXCLUSIVE FEAtURESPRING 2013

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Finsbury Circus

“To put that into context, a ‘big brand’ rival business rates adviser who has been established for much longer advises on just over 1,000,000 sq ft in Dublin and they got an 18 month head start on us,” adds Nice.

Mulhall says, “the combined ‘GE/MM offering’ has been very well received by clients who are particularly impressed by Gerald Eve’s very measured approach and total comprehension of the issues.” He adds: “It gives our Dublin clients great comfort to know that Richard has been involved in some of the largest office buildings in London such as 1,000,000 sq ft for J.P. Morgan at Canary Wharf and over 500,000 sq ft for Swiss Re at the Gherkin in the City.”

“Our capacity to deploy significant resources, married with Murphy Mulhall’s forensic market knowledge and comprehensive database of relevant office leasing transactions, is a compelling offer,” agrees Nice.

The bulk of the business rates work has been focussed on Dublin offices but they are now getting drawn into more work for hotels as well.

Investment is clearly another area which both firms hope will be boosted.

ALLIANCE RE-EVALUAtES DUBLIN’S FAIR CItyIN LOOkING tO EXPLOIt A StRENGthENING RECOVERy StORy yOU COULD DO WORSE thAN hEED thE ADVICE OF thE VILLAGE PEOPLE AND “GO WESt” – NO NOt tO WALES – BUt tO IRELAND.

that was exactly what Gerald Eve did, when in November it unveiled a strategic alliance with leading Dublin-based niche

commercial property agent, Murphy Mulhall. The venture was announced as a means to boost the offering of both firms. ENGAGE discovers that impressive gains have already been made.

Mike Riordan a senior partner at Gerald Eve explains that his firm is constantly on the look-out for opportunities to expand into other markets with its range of services. “An alliance with a respected adviser like Murphy Mulhall, allows us both to enhance our rating, investment, asset management, valuation and agency offerings by blending shared expertise with local knowledge of both Ireland, and the UK.”

Murphy Mulhall was established in 2009 by ex CBRE directors Robert Murphy and James Mulhall. Mulhall, an agency expert joined the Irish forerunner of CBRE in 1998, and Murphy, an investment specialist, in 2000.

Murphy Mulhall is now the fastest growing niche property advisory firm in Dublin. It specialises in office agency, investment, asset management and valuation

consultancy and has advised on some of the most significant office and investment deals in Dublin.

“Our business philosophy is simple – our clients are our greatest asset and we are committed to offering them a quality service. The culture of Gerald Eve is very similar, as it has one of the highest partner-client ratios in the industry,” says James Mulhall, Managing Director.

“Many business people in Ireland are now putting expertise and personal service above the ‘big brand’ when it comes to selecting their property advisers. We are benefitting from our philosophy now that the recovery is well under way. There is an obvious attraction for our clients to Gerald Eve’s consistently solid track record in the UK and comfort in its blue chip client list, the majority of whom have stayed with Gerald Eve for such a long time.”

Its partnership with the UK’s leading business rates adviser has enabled Murphy Mulhall to offer Irish clients a new specialist rating service. Whilst the UK Government has pushed its business rates revaluation from 2015 to 2017, it is a very different matter in Ireland, where 27,000 commercial properties in Dublin City Centre are currently undergoing a full re-valuation.

The new rateable value will be based on the market rent as at April 2011.

Gerald Eve rating partner Richard Nice who is leading the Dublin rates initiative with James reports that the partnership is already advising on more than 750,000 sq ft of Dublin office property for clients including Credit Suisse, J.P.Morgan, Prudential and Standard Life and leading Irish law firm A&L Goodbody.

An alliance with a respected adviser like Murphy Mulhall, allows us both to enhance our rating, investment, asset management, valuation and agency offerings by blending shared expertise with local knowledge of both Ireland, and the Uk.

Illustration: Neil Webb

Not just Irish investors looking to the UK but also British and international investors and developers, buying into Dublin’s recovery story. This is spiced up by the lack of new development in the city and big requirements such as Facebook, Google, Vodafone and KPMG to name a few.

“After three long years of relative inactivity, the Irish commercial property investment market finally came alive in 2012” says Riordan. “Murphy Mulhall estimate that 2012 could have seen as much as 1650m transacted.”

In a major departure from the boom years, the buyers of the larger lot sizes are now almost exclusively of international origin, such as Americans like Northwood Capital and Kennedy Wilson, German investors such as AM Alpha and Israeli investors like Igal Ahouvi.

Dublin was once regarded by investors as similar to the UK’s regional markets of somewhere like Cardiff or Newcastle says Mulhall. “For the second year in succession, take-up in the Dublin office market (approx. 1,500,000 sq ft in 2012)

has surpassed that of Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds office markets. It is stats like these, combined with a recovering market that have prompted a number of UK developers to run their slide rules over various Dublin projects.”

He and Riordan are keen to encourage more UK developers to look at Dublin. “We need new office development in the core CBD and cranes must start appearing on the Dublin skyline soon.

The lack of new buildings is frustrating some domestic firms’ expansion plans. We also run the risk of losing an existing multi-national or future foreign direct investment projects to other European cities. We are not the only country keen for their business,” Mulhall adds pointedly.

For more information contact mriordan@geraldeve.comTel. 020 7653 6828rm@murphymulhall.comTel. +353 (1) 634 0300

Robert Murphy and James Mulhall

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“Our approach is as relevant with smaller schemes as it is with larger corporate portfolios and I’m also keen to develop our non-corporate business. We have recently been working with a private family trust in York and were involved with the planning application for the regeneration and re-use of the former White Swan Hotel, in York city centre. The building lies in a sensitive location, in fact within a conservation area, surrounded by listed buildings. A carefully considered planning strategy ensured support from the local council’s conservation and planning departments and planning permission was granted at the end of last year.”

Something that sets Gerald Eve’s planning department apart is its ability to tap into other disciplines within the firm. “Viability issues have become increasingly important to clients too,” says Spawton, who works very closely with his development and valuation colleagues.

“Our advice to developers may include identifying opportunities to revisit financial contributions contained in S106 agreements, advising on change to more attractive mix of uses within the current planning policy framework or examining the potential to influence evolving planning policy.”

Spawton adds, “When growth returns to the UK economy there will be increasing opportunities for business and individuals to capitalise on these opportunities in all areas of the market, from manufacturing to house building, from halting the decline in town centres to making care provision fit for purpose in the 21st century.”

For more information contact hspawton@geraldeve.comTel. 0161 830 7077

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Says Harry Spawton, partner at Gerald Eve who now heads up the Gerald Eve regional planning team based in Manchester. “Our job

as I see it is to identify town planning opportunities for clients and work with their teams to make sure we deliver added value and growth.

“Good and enduring relationships are key. When we’re working with clients for a number of years we are able to get to grips with their business objectives and put this knowledge to good use when advising on a comprehensive planning strategy.” This is particularly evident from the work the firm is undertaking for Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world’s leading brewer.

Spawton explains, “For example, we were involved with the successful planning application by long term client AB InBev for extending its Green Belt site at Salmesbury, near Preston. The planning permission provides for major additional

storage for the growing business, as well as a landscaping scheme which protects the visual amenity and local environment.”

The team has also been involved in developing newer relationships with well-known brands such as Jaguar Land Rover and Lloyds Pharmacy. “Our work with Jaguar Land Rover is underpinned by the team’s fundamental understanding of the importance of the client’s needs and the best way of presenting them to the town planning decision makers. We are now advising JLR on its commitment to growth across its UK portfolio including the proposed expansion and reorganisation of sites in Coventry, Solihull, Stratford and Warwick.”

While the regional economies have weathered worse storms than the capital, Spawton believes that the willingness to challenge conventional wisdom and develop new ideas lies at the heart of the firm’s planning team and its expanding client list, particularly in the regions.

PLANNING FOR GROWth

Companies should be constantly reassessing their property portfolios and managing their assets to their best advantage.

Iluustration: Ben the Illustrator / julesrepresents.com

“The new infrastructure alone won’t drive occupier demand, but it does help Glasgow become an increasingly viable business location, especially for large corporates,” says Thurtell. “For two weeks in 2014, there will be a focus on Glasgow and it’s vital we make the most of this opportunity.

For more information contact kthurtell@geraldeve.comTel. 0141 227 2371

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LEt thE GAMES BEGIN WIth GLASGOW GEARING-UP FOR thE 2014 COMMONWEALth GAMES, thERE IS MUCh EXCItEMENt IN thE AIR, BUt CAN ShORt tERM FOCUS BE tRANSLAtED INtO LONG tERM GAIN FOR thE CIty’S COMMERCIAL PROPERty MARkEt?

there can be few better cities than Glasgow to arrive in by rail. As trains glide across the bridge into the Edwardian Glasgow Central

station, passengers are treated to a view of the historic River Clyde beneath them, with the handsome city centre stacked onto its northern banks. It is a view that many visitors to 2014’s Commonwealth Games will take away with them as a lasting memory of their time in the city.

Broadly speaking, Glasgow is ready for the Games. With 70% of the venues in place at the time of the bidding process, and construction work on the remaining sites either already complete or on-schedule, the city is well-prepared to accept athletes and visitors from countries that represent a third of the World’s population.

Less clear are the long term benefits that the Games will bring to Glasgow’s business community, and more specifically the commercial property market. While the long term benefits of the London Olympic Games – an event that was both universally-praised and truly global – are only starting to be realised, what can be predicted about the impact of the Commonwealth Games on Scotland’s largest city?

What can be said is that any impetus to the commercial property market will be gratefully received. Like all UK cities except London, Glasgow has seen a drop-off in activity since 2008, with restricted funding conditions effectively calling a halt to development. Ken Thurtell, partner and head of Gerald Eve’s Glasgow office, says:

“For the past five years, it has only really been schemes with significant pre-lets, such as Land Securities’ Buchanan Quarter retail-led scheme, Regent Capital’s 141 West Nile Street and the new Scottish Power HQ, that have been able to hit the button and develop. And the occupational market has been similarly hit by the ongoing struggles of the UK economy.”

But there are signs that the market is beginning to improve. Rumours abound that work will soon begin on a number of city-centre schemes that had previously been put on hold, joining Abstract Securities’ speculatively-developed 170,000 sq ft St Vincent Plaza office scheme, which is currently under construction. Enabling works and funding options are being investigated and lined-up – if not actually used – so that developers can react quickly to improving market conditions. “Institutions and developers with oven-ready sites and planning permissions in place are definitely positioning themselves to take advantage of any upswing in occupier demand,” says Thurtell.

If there are small-but-encouraging signs of more positive market sentiment, then the forthcoming Games must take at least some of the credit. While the economic benefit of the new venues is debateable, the improvements to the city’s infrastructure, especially transport, are much more tangible. By the start of the Games, over £2bn will have been spent on transport, including major motorway links, railway and subway refurbishments, Clyde Fastlink and river-based transport.

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Illustration: Mick Brownfield

the Commonwealth Games, through infrastructure improvements and the promotion of Glasgow to both the Uk and the wider world, can be a real catalyst for change and I’m sure they will be embraced by both the city’s business community and its wider population.

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It is said that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to become truly proficient with a stringed instrument. Watching participants at a Gerald Eve ‘blast

and cast’ (shooting and fishing) event at Dunston Mills in Sussex, it becomes apparent that the same maxim could be applied to the art of fly fishing.

Luckily for the novice fly casters a guiding hand was present in the form of Nica Prichard, one of UK fishing’s leading lights and also mother of Gerald Eve partner and City office head, Simon Prichard.

Following a successful competitive career in which she represented both Wales and Great Britain, Nica now divides her time between coaching and supporting organisations such as the Welsh Salmon & Trout Angling Association, the Welsh Ladies Fly Fishing Team and the Welsh Ladies Angling Development (WLAD) movement.

Of these, it is her involvement with WLAD of which she is most proud, having undertaken extensive charitable work to help disadvantaged women through the sport of angling. She has become known, in particular, for her support of a charity called Casting for Recovery (castingforrecovery.org.uk), which provides fully funded rural retreats for women who have been affected by breast cancer.

These retreats offer the chance to learn new skills and make new friends in a natural environment, whilst also incorporating counselling and psychotherapy sessions as part of the recovery process. “It is the most worthwhile thing I have ever done”, says Nica, clearly moved by the experience.

Her work with another charity, Get Hooked on Fishing (ghof.org.uk), involves engaging with disadvantaged young people through the sport of fishing as a diversion from anti-social or criminal behaviour.

“There’s nothing like the challenge of fishing”, she says. “It makes you connect right back with nature. On any given day, I might see kingfishers, otters, voles or dragonflies. In actual fact, catching fish is purely incidental.”

Nica talks with conviction about the positive impact of the countryside on people’s lives. “Having grown up in rural Pembrokeshire, the love of country sports has always been there. In fact, I don’t even remember a time when I didn’t have a fishing rod in my hand”, she says. Even when the family lived in England, Nica made a special effort to maintain the connection with Wales and to keep her children exposed to an outdoor life.

This commitment both to the sport and to charity saw Nica awarded with an MBE in the 2009 New Year’s Honours List. She is characteristically modest about this and her only abiding memory of the investiture is having her Nicorette patches confiscated upon entry to Buckingham Palace. “I was so agitated by then, I never really calmed down enough to enjoy the experience”, she says.

Alongside the sporting commitments, Nica has also found time to establish something of a media presence. She has been a regular contributor to the BBC’s Video Nation series, where she has documented her key passions including gardening, fishing and, of course, Wales.

This has been accompanied by regular appearances on Welsh language channel, S4C, where she has presented numerous fishing shows and taught various celebrities show to fish.

Speaking to Nica for any length of time, it becomes clear that her passion isn’t confined to fishing alone. She is a proud mother and prouder grandmother who goes to great lengths to spend time with her three children and ten grandchildren.

“I’m under no illusions that my grandchildren think I’m crazy”, she says happily.

“But it doesn’t stop them coming down to see me and it doesn’t stop me from doing something odd when they’re around.”

Simon Prichard backs this up enthusiastically. “There is no doubt she’s not like other mothers and grandmothers, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.” His mother’s passion for the sport has certainly rubbed off on Simon, who spends as much of his free time as possible at the water’s edge.

Although he has yet to infect all of his children with the fishing bug, Simon recently took a trip with his youngest son, twelve year old Gareth, on a fishing trip to Iceland with Nica. The three-day trip proved to be a hit with young Gareth and both his father and grandmother have high hopes for him continuing the Prichard fishing legacy.

Speaking of his mother’s achievements, Simon says: “I’m proud of what she’s done and I’m proud that she’s always been a bit different. But part of me thinks she was born in the wrong era – despite her huge personality and zest for life she remains a woman of her generation. If she’d have been born into a different time or a different background, I can’t help thinking she’d have achieved even greater things or had a chance at a big media career.”

It’s hard to imagine Nica sharing such regrets, however, as she describes what a lifetime of country pursuits has given her. “Am I privileged? No. Do I feel privileged? Absolutely. My life has never been about material possessions or flash cars or holidays. But what I have done and what I have always given to my children is access to outdoor sports – fishing, shooting, sailing – in a beautiful part of Wales. And that in itself is a privilege.”

For more information contact sprichard@geraldeve.comTel. 020 7653 6827

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Photography: Graeme harris

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As a charitable foundation, funded by the property industry, LandAid provides grants, free technical advice and other support that makes a real difference to disadvantage young people who have had a difficult start in life.

We help create the spaces and buildings and run projects that provide the opportunity for young people to rethink their ambitions, get training to help them into work, live independently and have a positive future.

LandAid’s support is ever more vital as many of the voluntary and charitable organisations

providing this crucial support have reduced income at a time when young people are really feeling the impact of the recession.

We can only provide this support through the generosity of many individuals and companies from across the property industry and in particular Foundation Partners like Gerald Eve.

So think about how you would like to get involved. It’s a great way to meet people, get really interesting experience and make a difference.

-3.1%Annual all property capital growth 2012

1.7%2012 increase in residential property prices

0.0%Annual all property rental growth 2012

5.0% GE forecast annualised all property total return 2012–16

MARkEt FACtS

7.2%Increase in residential property prices since April 2009 trough

7.4% All property equivalent yield as at January 2013 2.7%

CPI January2012

-0.3%GDP growth in q4 2012

17.1% Recovery in commercial values since June 2009 trough

3.3%RPI January 2013

2.4%GE all property total return forecast for 2012

3.7% All property total return forecast 2013

Visit www.landaid.org for more details.

Helping young people to learn new skills

LandAid’s support is more vital than ever

LANDAID IS A ChARIty thAt WORkS tO IMPROVE thE LIVES OF yOUNG PEOPLE IN thE Uk WhO EXPERIENCE DISADVANtAGES DUE tO thEIR ECONOMIC OR SOCIAL CIRCUMStANCES.

Disclaimer & copyrightThe views expressed in this magazine are those of the contributors for which Gerald Eve accepts no responsibility. Readers should take appropriate professional advice before acting on any issue raised.

This magazine is a short summary and is not intended to be definitive advice.No responsibility can be accepted for loss or damage caused by reliance on it.

© All rights reserved

The reproduction of the whole or part of this publication is strictly prohibited without permission from Gerald Eve LLP.

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For all enquiries please contact: Hugh Bullock Senior Partner hughbullock@geraldeve.com

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