Peterborough's Ortongate Shopping Centre is sold for undisclosed sum

Peterborough’s Ortongate Shopping Centre has been sold to a new owner just months after going on the market.

The 15-year-old Ortongate Shopping Centre, in Orton Goldhay, has been bought by Nottingham-based property developer ALB Group.

The centre, which was put up for sale earlier this year, was being sold in three chunks for a combined price of £5 million and the ALB Group has bought about 200,000 square feet of the 225,000 square feet site

The amount paid by ALB has not been revealed.

ALB now plans to spend £1 million on improvements to the shell units and create a cheaper, more flexible rent structure for potential tenants with the aim of filling the centre with a new mix of independent traders and big-name national brands.

The refurbishments will make the units easier to rent out and will vastly reduce any capital outlay required from new tenants.

In total, the Ortongate Shopping Centre occupies about 225,000 square feet with retailers including Wilko, Food Warehouse, Greggs, Co-op Foodstore and QD Stores and B&M and coffee giant Starbucks.

ALB’s purchase agreement excludes the properties at Ortongate currently occupied by B&M, Iceland and the Co-op, but includes everything else at the site.

Arran Bailey, owner and managing director of ALB Group, which has already agreed terms with new retailers on three of the vacant units at the centre, said: “High streets and retail centres up and down the country have been struggling hugely – even before many were decimated by the onset of Covid.

“But these centres are so important to their surrounding areas. It’s not just about shopping, it’s about socialisation, community, leisure and feeling good about where you live.

“Many property landlords have remained inflexible and have refused to move with the times.

“But we strongly believe that with a fresh approach to marketing and being far more flexible with the terms of our lease agreements, we can revitalise these centres and create a win-win situation for everyone. We all deserve better than we’ve been getting.”

The sale is the latest change at the centre, which earlier this month unveiled plans to convert a former police station within the building into offices.

Leading retailers at the centre include Wilko, Food Warehouse, Greggs, Co-op Foodstore and QD Stores and B&M and coffee giant Starbucks.

The sale is the latest change at the centre, which in February unveiled plans to convert a former police station within the building into offices.

German distributor of household and kitchen appliances Vorwerk has also announced it will be moving into Ortongate Shopping Centre after its application was approved by Peterborough City Council.

Oliver Marshall, director of FHP Property Consultants, which is jointly marketing Ortongate’s vacant units, said: “We are confident that ALB will soon turn around the fortunes of the centre.

“Ortongate has been purchased in a slightly sorry state, but ALB is now spending money where it’s needed to create a much more attractive offer for retail or leisure businesses.”

ALB, which has centres in Nottingham, Derby, Ipswich, Birkenhead and Huddersfield, has achieved its success partly by ensuring contract terms are affordable and flexible to encourage small, independent and niche traders.