Lidl signs at City Tower

Schroder Real Estate Investment has agreed terms to bring Lidl to its City Tower complex in Manchester on a 25-year lease.

Lidl UK has submitted detailed plans to Manchester City Council for a 10,985 sq ft store at ground level on Parker Street with a further 7,900 sq ft of basement space.

The store will have a double-frontage, taking up the space formerly occupied by Poundworld along with that currently occupied by Quality Save, which is to vacate in February 2019.

Subject to planning, the supermarket will open in spring, adding to Lidl’s existing store portfolio of 720 and forming part of the company’s growth plans which will see it open up to 50 new stores a year.

The Parker Street retail pitch also includes an M&S Simply Food and a Tesco Express.

Rob Cosslett, investment manager at Schroders, said: “This is part of our strategy for the continued improvement of the offering across the asset at all levels.

“This is a national, loved retailer which will only complement and enhance the existing offering. Lidl has a major expansion strategy focusing on prominent locations, so it is brilliant that City Tower has been recognised as a central and premier retail destination in Manchester.”

Lidl UK’s regional head of property Nick Harvey said: “A new store in Manchester marks another milestone in our ambitious store expansion programme. We’ve seen incredible demand for Lidl stores across the country and look forward to offering our quality products and incredible value to shoppers at City Tower.”

City Tower is owned in a joint venture held between Schroder Real Estate Investment Trust, the actively managed UK REIT, Schroder UK Real Estate Fund and Immobilien Europa Direkt.

Schroders was represented by Colliers International and Savills, while Rapleys acted for Lidl.