Anchorage 2 fully let after string of deals

Digital agency Apadmi and PPE provider Portwest are the latest companies to take space in the Salford Quays office building, bringing it to fully occupied.

Apadmi, a Manchester-based app development company, has agreed to take an additional 4,500 sq ft at Anchorage 2 after signing an 11-year lease on the building’s 12,500 sq ft penthouse in December.

Portwest, a global manufacturer and distributor of workwear, safetywear and PPE, agreed this month to take 4,171 sq ft. The company has yet to relocate to Anchorage 2, but Apadmi has been occupying the building as its national headquarters since the completion of a £500,000 fit-out in March.

The two most recent deals follow that of Bibby Financial Services, a subsidiary of Liverpool-based conglomerate Bibby Line Group, which leased 12,000 sq ft at the nine-storey block in the first quarter of this year.

Other tenants include educational services provider QA Consulting with 12,500 sq ft on a 10-year lease; engineering firm BakerHicks, which has 12,400 sq ft; construction firm Morgan Sindall, which has 12,400 sq ft as its regional headquarters, and the Department for Work and Pensions, which occupies three storeys totalling 37,650 sq ft on a 10-year lease it renewed last November.

The Anchorage complex in Salford Quays comprises the six-storey Anchorage 1 office block, which is currently empty and undergoing a refurbishment that began in May, and the nine-storey Anchorage 2.

Anchorage 1 totals 37,754 sq ft and Anchorage 2 totals 114,115 sq ft.

The properties are owned by asset manager Canmoor, which completed an £8m refurbishment of Anchorage 2 last year, including the creation of breakout and co-working spaces.

The Anchorage 1 refurbishment is intended to convert the existing space into a range of smaller flexible office suits ranging from 1,850 sq ft-5,500 sq ft in size, totaling 35,000 sq ft. The work is due to complete in September.

Ian Murray, director at Canmoor, said: “The refurbishment and subsequent new occupier interest at Anchorage 2 has been a roaring success – less than 12 months since the launch and we are fully let.

“There’s now a dynamic mix of businesses at Anchorage and that success has allowed us to continue our extensive refurbishment programme across the wider estate and provide more quality space for businesses looking to take advantage of the scheme’s well connected location.”

Apadmi’s expansion is intended to support the company’s forecast growth. It said in December it expects to grow its 125-strong workforce to 140 staff in the first half of this year, driven by work for clients including the Co-op, Argos and SailGP.

Garry Partington, chief executive of Apadmi, said: “Ensuring we have the right space for staff is an even more considered and important decision right now, with social distancing measures likely to be in place for some time.

“This additional floor ensures we have ample room to grow, while maintaining plenty of extra space to ensure social distancing.”

JLL and Edwards & Co are joint office letting agents on the Anchorage complex.

Ed Keany, director at Edwards & Co, said: “[Anchorage] has been by far the most successful building in Salford Quays this past 12 months.”