January 2015: Gilbert Evans rounded off 2014 celebrating the successful conclusion of a raft of garden centre property transactions with a combined turnover value of over £20 million and all completed in the final eight weeks of the year.
The UK’s leading garden centre property consultants advised on the following transactions:
- Gilbert Evans advised Blue Diamond on its 30-year lease of the £4m Trelawney Garden Centre in Wadebridge, Cornwall.
- On behalf of Wyevale Garden Centres, Gilbert Evans advised on:
- The acquisition of Podington Garden Centre in Northamptonshire
- The acquisition of the Dorset-based Golden Acres group comprising four centres, bringing Wyevale’s portfolio of centres to 148.
- The owner of Raglan Garden Centre, Monmouthshire selected Gilbert Evans to advise on the sale of the 10.5 acre garden centre to Wyevale Garden Centres
Mike Gilbert, partner at Gilbert Evans, comments:
“Up until towards the end of the year, 2014 was relatively quiet in terms of transaction volumes. This was not a reflection of demand, more down to timing. As we forecast, activity accelerated in the final few months of the year, with smaller groups and larger independents continuing to be targeted by larger operators. We were delighted to have the opportunity to demonstrate our breadth of expertise and experience through advising the UK’s leading national operators and also smaller family-run businesses on sales, acquisitions and leasing.”