Intu Properties, the company behind shopping centres including the Trafford Centre in Manchester and Lakeside in Essex, could seek to raise as much as £1bn to shore up its precarious finances.
Read the full article on The Guardian website
NAM Implications:
- The troubles affecting the owners of Shopping centres raise significant issues for NAMs.
- For suppliers, the fact that Intu, the owner of the Trafford Centre and Lakeside, is struggling with £5bn debt pile and is seeking up to £1bn in additional finance…
- …goes way beyond the issue of single customers in financial distress.
- The potential loss of anchor tenants (retailers that attract lesser retailers to shopping centres/malls) such as Arcadia and Debenhams can call into doubt the viability of shopping centres.
- i.e. they need to replace key tenants and are patently in no position to reduce rents…
- …especially having to pay business rates even when properties are vacant.
- Suppliers cannot and should not) take on the roles of bankers.
- It remains for suppliers to calculate the incremental sales required to replace Sales and Profits on any retail customer showing signs of financial stress…
- …especially those playing key roles (i.e. anchor tenants) in shopping centres…
- ..and consider their options…
