Eskmuir Properties completes £20M sale of Oxford industrial estate

Published by

Nicky Godding

Eskmuir Properties has announced the sale of Oxford industrial estate Nuffield Trade Park in Oxford to Legal & General’s Industrial Property Investment Fund (IPIF) for in excess of £20m.

The site comprises 18 trade counter and industrial units, providing a total gross internal area of 88,117 sq ft with individual unit sizes ranging from 2,879 sq ft to 17,608 sq ft.

Located on the south side of Oxford’s Eastern By-Pass Ring Road, Nuffield Trade Park benefits from direct access to the A34 and adjoins the newly developed Oxford Trade City.

Eskmuir has worked closely with its letting agents to enhance the tenant mix on the estate and to grow the quality and quantity of rental income. Current occupiers at Nuffield Trade Park include Royal Mail, BSS, City Plumbing Supplies, Sally Beauty and TLC.

Eskmuir partnered with its investment agents, Lewis Ellis, and solicitors, Osborne Clarke, to see this transaction completed. The sale follows Eskmuir’s acquisition of the £45m Lunar Portfolio at the start of 2021, a multi-let UK industrial portfolio of 8 estates.

Paul Hodgson, Managing Director of Eskmuir, said: “The interest we received for Nuffield Trade Park demonstrates how much demand there is for well-located industrial asset. We received a phenomenal response to the marketing programme, and we’re delighted with the excellent return generated for our investors. This sale will allow us to redeploy capital proceeds into further acquisitions where we can see opportunities to grow the rents and enhance the capital values significantly through our stewardship and proactive asset management.”

Specialist investment manager Eskmuir Properties has close to 30 years of experience delivering growth and robust income returns for family trust investors and charities through a diverse portfolio.

Jonathan Holland, Senior Fund Manager, LGIM Real Assets, added: “We’re delighted to have acquired Nuffield Trade Park. Testament to the Fund’s continued focus on investing in operational assets and developments, it’s a solid addition to our growing portfolio.

“IPIF’s portfolio spans the UK, creating assets in markets where the occupational demand significantly outweighs supply. This acquisition closely follows a successful, over-subscribed equity raise, as well as the Fund’s assets under management closing in on over £3bn; we look forward to continuing on with this trajectory, delivering leading market access alongside robust returns for our investor base.”

JLL acted on behalf of Legal & General while Eskmuir Properties were represented by Lewis Ellis.

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.