Mike Ashley, the retail mogul has offered nearly £50m to acquire an outlet shopping centre on the outskirts of Leeds, marking his latest foray into the world of retail property, the Times reports.
The billionaire owner of Frasers Group, has tabled the offer for Junction 32, which lies just off the M62, near Castleford.
The 250,000 sq ft outlet shopping centre has close to 100 stores, including outlet shops for popular brands including Nike, Adidas and Barbour, as well as Fraser-owned Jack Wills and Sports Direct.
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It is owned by Land Securities, which bought Junction 32 in 2017 as part of a £333m acquisition of three outlet centres from Hermes Investment Management.
The value of retail property has dropped significantly since retailers have moved more operations online.
Last year, Landsec chief executive Mark Allan said last year there was now 25% too much retail space in the UK.
Junction 32 was put up for sale over the winter because it does not fit within the three sectors where Landsec thinks it has a “sustainable competitive advantage”: best-in-class London offices, big retail destinations and mixed-use urban neighbourhoods.
The company declined to comment on the sale to Ashley, although a spokeswoman did tell the Times it was “considering various acquisition and disposal opportunities that make financial and strategic sense to the business”.
Ashley has been active in retail property of late, snapping up The Mall Shopping Centre in Luton back in March for £58m after it was put up for sale by Capital & Regional last year.
Frasers said those purchases reflected its “confidence in the future of the UK high street”.
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