Shaftesbury’s strategy is very clear and focused. The Group invests only in those districts within the West End which have an enduring demand from occupiers and popularity with their customers. Our investments are all close to the unique cluster of shops, restaurants, theatres, cinemas and world class galleries, museums and historic sites, which are the essence of London’s West End. These districts all have excellent access to a wide choice of public transport both day and night.

We invest in locations close to streets traditionally regarded as prime with the aim of assembling clusters of buildings or villages where we see opportunities to create rental growth. This approach allows us to benefit from active estate management across our villages, with bold projects and innovative changes of use. We have a wide range of unit sizes and uses within our portfolio which provide us with great flexibility in meeting the needs of tenants and adapting to changing conditions.

An essential ingredient of this strategy is our encouragement of new trading concepts. Many of our retail and restaurant tenants are unique. At the same time well known international brands are choosing to locate their first UK stores in our villages. In this way, our villages are a refreshing antidote to what is available elsewhere in increasingly homogenous high streets and shopping centres.

Implementation of this strategy demands an exceptionally detailed knowledge of our locations, individual properties and potential tenants. We derive considerable expertise and market advantage from working within a few minutes walk of all our investments. Also, we have acquired a specialised and very intricate blend of skills both to regenerate buildings and to create distinctive space with an emphasis on shops and restaurants, which in our villages we know will let well and suffer limited obsolescence.