Christie & Co sells former forecourt and workshop on A40 at Huntley

Published by

Nicky Godding

The site was in high demand when it launched to the market and was sold following 14 viewings and 10 offers from hopeful buyers. The successful new owners, Dasitha (Das) Gamage and Janaka Watowita were drawn to the opportunity due to the large plot size and development potential.

They said: “We have many years of experience operating retail stores in the UK and we were keeping an eye out for an opportunity to acquire our first freehold forecourt business for over 10 years. Support and guidance is invaluable for an SME such as us, and our experience with both Christie & Co and Christie Finance was very positive.

“We have several plans to develop this handy site into a modern day forecourt and convenience store and we are excited at the prospect of working with one of the national fuel brands and symbol groups to bring these plans to life.”

Funding for Dasitha and Janaka’s purchase was secured through retail finance specialist, Jimmy Johns, Director at Christie & Co. He said: “We’re delighted to have estsablished a working relationship with Jets Trading Limited, with this deal being the first of two freehold acquisitions that Christie Finance has supported for the growing company, the second due to complete later next month. It is always a challenge to fund multiple first-time purchases so we had to work closely with Das and Janaka to secure the right supportive lender. I wish them all the best as they continue to grow.”

Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe. After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts. She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.