Southwark based property agency Henshall & Partners reveal they are experiencing huge demand for shell and core commercial units in London. In the past weeks, Henshall & Partners have let over £450,000pax and sold over £5,000,000 worth of commercial space. Henshall & Partners reveal that this increase in demand for commercials units, which have been sold and let across London’s fringe markets, is testament to a return to normal life and uptick in business post the COVID-19 restrictions.

Henshall & Partners’ string of deals have been across London. Deals include two restaurants in SE9 and SE1 (German Donor Kebab and The Last Talisman) let for £56,000pax and £120,000pax respectively, a high-end barber on Tooley Street, SE1 which let for £35,0000pax, and industrial bakery/ coffee roastery in Forest Hill, SE23 let for £60,000pax and a PT studio in Highams Park, E4 which let for £20,000pax. Notable unit sales include almost 10,000sqft in Tottenham, N17 with one unit sold to Nisa and the other to an accountancy business for £1,650,000 in total and a unit in Hornsey N8 to an investor selling for £330,000. They have also just launched a brand-new restaurant and bar property set within the grounds of an old fire station in Borough SE1.

Henshall & Partners believe London property has shown huge resilience and in particular SME businesses and sole traders who have adapted to restricted trading conditions. The lifting of almost all rules in July, coined ‘Freedom Day’, has enabled most businesses to now operate back at full capacity in a pre-pandemic manner. As an example, the Office for National Statistics has recently reported that job vacancies in the food service industry have reached 75.4% in the past three months with job vacancies at an all-time high with over one million positions to be filled. A statistic demonstrating a real demand from the consumer to get back to normal life once again.

Chris Henshall, Managing Director at Henshall & Partners commented: “Over the past weeks, we have experienced a notable increase in demand for shell and core units, both on the sale and rental side. Many of the units we have let or sold have been to office occupiers ready to get back to work and retail outlets seeing optimism from increased footfall. The role out of the COVID-19 vaccine and the easing of restrictions for industries has undoubtedly boosted confidence and business for shops, bars, restaurants, and cafes and we anticipate sustained demand over the next few months as normal life returns.”

Henshall & Partners was founded in 2017 by Chris Henshall, who has over ten years of experience in the commercial property industry. Henshall & Partners offer services focused on land, development and investment properties across London and the Southeast. The company retains a loyal client base due to their extensive knowledge on emerging areas and evolving plans implemented by local government alongside forward-thinking marketing strategies.