Avid Autos Tunes into Park Life

Date: 06/01/2012
Expansion plans and a sound investment opportunity were the drivers behind a Peterborough company's 4 year search for new premises - a search which ended with the company, Avid Autos taking up a freehold unit on a 0.87 acre plot at Eagle Business Park at the end of 2010.

Avid Autos - vehicle bodywork and accident repair specialists approved by the insurance industry - has been trading for 16 years. For the past 8 years it has been trading from premises in Fletton High Street, which, with 11 employees and a constant flow of work, the company had outgrown.

Owner & director, Mohammed Zulifiqar was looking for the right location and at the right price. He explains:

"We had outgrown our premsies in Fletton High Street in so many ways. So, crucial to a maturing business, it was the natural desire to move away from leasehold to securing freehold premises."

"The Park, and the investment that businesses and the developer have made in it, means we will have more in common than in competition - and I think this is something which can only happen on a new business park like this."

BSM Expand Cambridge Office

Date: 05/01/2012
BSM are strengthening their Cambridge Office with the appointment of a new Director and the promotion of an existing Associate to Director level.

Ben Green, an experienced Chartered Surveyor, joined as a Director at the start of the year in the New Year. Ben has worked in the Cambridge area for 8 years and previously worked in the central London market. He will be responsible for commercial agency, marketing, sales, lettings, investments and developments. Mark Critchley has also been promoted to Director and will be concentrating on valuation and other professional work including rent reviews, lease renewals and rating appeals.

Mike Sumpster will become a Consultant in April with a more strategic remit and will also continue to work for existing clients. Mike comments “this is a great opportunity for expansion and shows the company’s commitment to the Cambridge commercial property market. Ben’s appointment and Mark’s promotion will add great depth to the new team”.

Lordgate move to Huntingdon

Date: 06/12/2011
Lordgate Engineering Ltd, the specialist engineering business producing components for the Aerospace, Military and Rail industries, has taken a lease on the former Mission Electronics building in Huntingdon for the relocation of their business from St Ives.

Managing Director, David Miles, commented “the move will enable us to combine all of our operations under a single roof rather than the two buildings as at present and provide us with a first class facility which we will be proud to show our customers”. He added “we are extremely grateful to Aviva Investors who have been very helpful throughout the letting process and we are looking forward to a long relationship with them as our landlords”.

Aviva Investors were represented by Barker Storey Matthews. Alan Matthews of BSM who negotiated the letting on Aviva’s behalf commented “we are delighted to have brought this matter to a successful conclusion and wish Lordgate every success in their new premises."

Major Huntingdon letting follows expansion

Date: 23/08/2011
Barker Storey Matthews Huntingdon Office, acting on behalf of the Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP) Property Trust, has leased Units 1-3 Ermine Centre on Huntingdon’s Ermine Business Park to CLE Print Ltd who will be relocating from St Ives.

The premises comprise over half the established Ermine Centre incorporating three linked units totalling just over 51,000 sq ft. The transaction was handled by BSM director Richard Adam who comments “We have been involved with this estate for over 20 years and it has always proved popular to occupiers with a good blend of office and warehouse/business space together with excellent parking, good access and what remains a distinctive design and image.

CLE will move into the new facility in the Autumn and it will serve as the Headquarters for Mimeo Europe as well as Mimeo’s first production and distribution centre in Europe. More than 4,000 corporations across every major industry use Mimeo and CLE services to manage print and distribute materials to over 141 countries. The combined company has over 640 employees.

Central Cambridge Office Sale

Date: 17/05/2011
BSM’s Cambridge office has completed the sale of a prominent Victorian Office Building on Brooklands Avenue in the centre of Cambridge to Rustat Property Company. The attractive building provides accommodation over four floors, totalling 2,416 sq ft and represented a rare opportunity to purchase a freehold office building in the centre of the city.

Huntingdon office investment sold

Date: 17/01/2011
BSM have arranged the sale of Unit 3 Ramsay Court, a semi-detached office building on Hinchingbrooke Business Park in Huntingdon.

In 2010 BSM let the building to General Dynamics Ltd on a 3 year full repairing and insuring lease at a rental of £33,750 pa exclusive. The investment has now been sold to a private self-investing personal pension fund (SIPP) who paid a price reflecting a net initial yield of 10%.

Avid Purchase at Kimbolton

Date: 27/10/2010
Barker Storey Matthews Huntingdon office have sold Unit 1, Kym Road, Bicton Industrial Park, Kimbolton, comprising around 4,893 sq ft, to Avid HiFi Ltd.

Avid HiFi, who relocated from Alconbury, are involved in the design and manufacture of high-end audio equipment, distributed to over 35 countries worldwide as well as offering their engineering services to companies as diverse as motor sport to medical equipment. Avid’s MD, Conrad Mas commented “with a continually increasing headcount and significant investment in new machinery, Avid have outgrown their previous production facility. Our new facility offers substantial scope for future growth and flexibility”. Barker Storey Matthews’ Director, Richard Adam, commented “Kimbolton continues to be a popular location. The building is situated in a prominent position within the estate and benefits from good on site parking and estate security. We are always seeking new instructions, particularly for modern freehold buildings between 3,000 and 10,000 sq ft for occupiers within the area”.

St Ives office space let to Mick George

Date: 18/10/2010
BSM’s Huntingdon office has let the first floor of Suite 2 within Lancaster House, Meadow Lane, St Ives to Mick George Ltd. The offices comprising 2,926 sq ft are finished to a high specification close to the Guided Busway

Richard Adam of BSM comments, “we are pleased to welcome Mick George to Lancaster House. This is a first class office location, well connected, for both the St Ives bypass and the St Ives town centre.”

Peterborough Business Park Acquired

Date: 21/09/2010
Clients of Barker Storey Matthews have acquired four office buildings at Peterborough Business Park, Lynchwood, Peterborough.

Dencora (Peterborough) LLP completed the purchase of around 124,500 sq ft in August and have instructed BSM's Peterborough office to market Fountain Court, comprising 47,970 sq ft of high quality office accommodation with the benefit of 251 car parking spaces. Steve Hawkins, director of the Peterborough office comments "Fountain Court offers excellent accomodation in a mature landscaped environment in one of the best locations in the city. We can offer highly competitive terms and are also able to offer the freehold". Other buildings acquired by Dencora include 22,500 sq ft let to BGL Group and 11,500 sq ft let to ADP. BNP Paribas and Aldermore also occupy Western House, linked to Fountain Court.

Strong Retail Demand in Bury

Date: 31/08/2010
Barker Storey Matthews have recently completed the letting of 75 St John's Street, Bury St Edmunds to East Anglian Children's Hospice who have taken a lease for a term of ten years.

St John's Street is a popular retail destination in Bury St Edmunds and the letting shows continued demand for retail space in the town.