Full occupancy expected in the Marshes Shopping Centre by Christmas

Staff at the opening of the Tiger store in the Marshes Shopping Centre back in June. Other big names are expected in the centre shortly. Picture: Arthur Kinahan

Kennedy Wilson, the company which acquired the Marshes Shopping Centre in Dundalk last September, expects the centre to be at full occupancy by Christmas.

The recent opening of the likes of Tiger and Benefit Cosmetics is set to be followed in the coming weeks by the opening of fashion outlet H&M and outdoor clothing and accessories chain, Trespass.

The Marshes will be 10 years open on November 3rd

CBRE and Bannon are the agents for the Marshes Shopping Centre and Bernardine Hogan of CBRE told The Irish Independent today that including lettings in the pipeline, she expects occupancy levels to increase from 75% when Kennedy Wilson bought the centre to 94% by September.

She added: “I expect to achieve full occupancy in time for the Christmas season.”

The centre is reporting football of around 80,000 a week, with rents ranging form €35 and €55 per sq ft depending on location, size of the store and convenant.

Kennedy Wilson bought the Marshes for €44.5 million last year. The centre will celebrate its 10^th anniversary this November.

Meanwhile, Equivalenza, the global chain which manufactures perfumes and aromatic products and sells them through its own stores is also on the lookout for an outlet in Dundalk to follow on from the opening of stores in Letterkenny and Donaghmede recently.

Dundalk Retail Park up for sale

Woodies is the anchor tenant at Dundalk Retail Park

Dundalk Retail Park is amongst a portfolio of six retail schemes around the country and one office block that has been put on the market for €120m.

The Spectrum portfolio is for sale through joint selling agents Savills and Bannon, with the assets producing around €11m of income a year, offering an initial yield of 9pc.

The retail schemes are Douglas Court Shopping Centre, south of Cork city; Dundalk Retail Park; Quayside Shopping Centre in Sligo town; Bloomfields Shopping Centre in Dun Laoghaire; The Mill Shopping Centre in Clondalkin; and Kilbarrack Shopping Centre.

Also included in the sale is a State let office block opposite The Mill Shopping Centre on Ninth Lock Road. The whole of the three storey modern office building and its 94 car parking spaces is let to Dublin City Council and the OPW.

All properties are funded by Lloyds Bank, which is the appointed receiver. Combined, the assets provide around 569,000 sq ft of commercial accommodation and over 31 acres of development land.

Dundalk Retail Park owners Finnabair Estates went into receivership early in 2012 under interest payments of nearly €4 million a year to the Bank of Scotland and other lenders.

The retail park on the Inner Relief Road has 20 retail warehouses with an overall floor area of 21,578sq m (223,276sq ft) along with an industrial building and a fast food outlet. The tenants include Woodies, Currys, Homestore & More, Smyths Toys and KFC. Rental income comes to an impressive €2.67 million.