U+I sells Chill Factore
Snow Centres has bought the 167,000 sq ft indoor ski slope, part of the wider Beyond scheme next to the Trafford Centre, for an undisclosed sum as U+I looks to offload non-core assets.
The buyer also operates the Snow Centre Hemel Hempstead and Chill Factore is the second asset to be added to its portfolio.
Beyond comprises Chill Factore, which has two indoor snow slopes – a 180-metre main slope and a 40-metre lesson slope – as well 95,000 sq ft of commercial space let to occupiers including Evans Cycles and Nandos.
The sale of Chill Factore, which opened in 2007, forms part of U+I’s strategy to dispose of non-core assets to boost funds for major regeneration projects across the UK.
U+I instructed agency CBRE to sell the asset in January, seeking offers in the region of £20m.
Speaking to Place North West at the time, U+I chief executive Richard Upton said: “For years pre-Covid, Chill Factore has been a strong performer in terms of generating operational and rental income, but clearly now it’s a risk as it doesn’t fit in with our regeneration focus and offers no further development opportunities,”
U+I’s national portfolio contains around 15-20 similar assets that the company is looking to divest over the next 12 months.
The firm has around 6m sq ft of mixed-use schemes across the UK that are being readied for a start on site this year, including Mayfield, the £1.4bn Manchester mixed-use scheme.
Ian Brown, managing director of Snow Centres, said: “For more than a decade, Chill Factore has built a reputation as one of the most iconic leisure brands in the UK. It complements our existing business extremely well and was the most obvious way to expand our role in the growing UK Snowsports industry.”
Matt Potter, head of direct investment portfolio at U+I, said: “The sale of Chill Factore to The Snow Centre is part of our ongoing strategy to dispose of non-core assets. In so doing, we can focus on investing time and resources on our regeneration portfolio and boost our balance sheet.”
Arcane Real Estate represented Snow Centres and CBRE acted for U+I
