79th Group - The successful acquisition of Millennium Park and expansion of Seventy Ninth Commercial Division

Curt Webster, Investment Director of The 79th Group, provides an update on Seventy Ninth Commercial, 79th’s commercial property division’s latest acquisition and the next steps for the project.

Late last year, we successfully acquired Millennium Park, a 10,000-square-foot commercial property that previously was home to one large company, and as part of our asset transformation strategy, will soon house 59 new offices.

As the Investment Director, I’m thrilled to see our stakeholders getting involved already and I can’t wait to see the project develop.

How uncertainty plays in our favour

Not so long ago at the height of Covid-19, we were all confined to our homes. En masse, companies began to navigate the tricky transition from their regular office life to new office solutions.

Large businesses are looking to shed their oversized offices, often at a heavily discounted price. Seventy Ninth Commercial specialises in acquiring these undervalued assets that have been significantly discounted. We then transform the commercial building into a number of small offices which are beautifully designed and well-equipped to service small and medium-sized businesses — which constitute over 99% of all businesses in the UK.[i]

Work begins on Millennium Park

Our expert ability to find undervalued properties and transform them into profitable enterprises led us to Millennium Park. Located in Birchwood, Warrington, our latest acquisition is situated in an established hub of technology and e-commerce excellence, which is already home to household names of the likes of Toyota, New Balance and Betfred.

Refurbishment is set to begin in the coming months, which will see the offices kitted out with fresh décor, designed by the award-winning architects of Falconer Chester Hall.

Projects such as Millennium Park offer long term and multiple revenue streams. Not only will our venture improve the value of the property over time, but the new space will come fitted with a number of services, from wi-fi to catering.

Our next project

At Seventy Ninth Group, we never stand still. We’ve got our next project already in motion. Having successfully identified a prime commercial opportunity, with a variety of opportunities available, we’re on our way to beginning our next stage of commercial office conversion. Through following our tried-and-tested model of development, I’m proud to watch Seventy Ninth Commercial flourish.

Going from strength to strength in a challenging landscape

In light of our recent developments, I’m confident that our investments are being made in the right place. After such a promising beginning, I cannot wait to see what the rest of this year holds, both for myself, Seventy Ninth Group as a whole, and all our stakeholders.

The 79th Group Expands Business Operations to the USA

Jake Webster, Managing Director at The 79th Group outlines the company’s strategy for expanding business operations into America.

We are proud to announce the launch of our new offering for accredited investors in the United States to access the UK real estate market.

Seventy Ninth USA One is our first US venture. The offering will specialise in the purchase and redevelopment of undervalued assets, across a variety of real estate projects, and will enable accredited investors from the US to have ‘hands-off’ access to lucrative UK property investments.

The investment objective is to achieve capital growth and/or rental income by investing in and developing property across residential, commercial and leisure assets. Seventy Ninth USA One has a maximum aggregate amount of $20,000,000.00 USD.

This move into US markets is a significant next step in the international growth of our business. Over the last two years, the Seventy Ninth Group has continued to build its relationships with existing and new partners, such as private and commercial banks, administrators and insolvency practitioners to secure a vast array of profitable opportunities in the UK real estate market.

These projects have ranged from single unit refurbishment projects to multiple unit developments. The projects have been exclusively presented to us by our relationships, in which we intend to capitalise upon with our stakeholders. This launch offers US investors a brilliant opportunity to open up their portfolio to the thriving UK real estate market.

As The Seventy Ninth Group continues to grow and expand its presence in multiple jurisdictions, I'm pleased to announce this recent offering is now available to investors in the USA, and will subsequently expand our global stakeholder community. As the world’s largest economy, the USA is a prominent investor in the UK real estate sector and an important partner to the UK economy in general.

The USA implements a robust regulatory regime, in which the UK financial sector falls short on accommodating strong investor sentiment from the USA, therefore we are thrilled to be able to accommodate such investor demand for UK real estate assets, given we are able to comply with the local regulation set out by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). The Seventy Ninth Group is one of only a few investment providers in the UK with the skillset and expertise to operate in such a prestigious regulatory environment.

Local stakeholders visit Bletchley View construction site

Property development company Godwin Developments was pleased to welcome local politicians along with CBRE Investment Management to view construction progress at their affordable residential scheme Bletchley View this month (January 2023).

Iain Stewart MP, who represents Bletchley as part of his Milton Keynes South constituency, toured the site to acquaint himself with the project. Accompanied by Stuart Pratt, Co-Founder of Godwin Developments, and Steven Gascoyne, Associate Director – Construction along with project managers from Fed3 Projects and Winvic, Mr. Stewart was shown the current stage of construction and how the development has advanced since it started in May 2022. The team on-site has now reached the fourth-floor level of the north building and completion is expected by Q2 2024.

When complete, Bletchley View will comprise 184 homes of one-, two- and three-bedroom properties, across mid-rise flats and a row of townhouses along with commercial and community spaces for the benefit of new and neighbouring residents.

The team was also pleased to host Councillors Mo Imran and Nabeel Nazir for a tour of the site. As two of the three representatives of the Bletchley Park ward for Milton Keynes Council, they were pleased to see work underway to bring more affordable homes to their area and support the regeneration of Bletchley.

Dane Matthews from CBRE Investment Management, joined the visit on-site. As announced in July 2022, the CBRE UK Affordable Housing Fund (AHF), managed by CBRE Investment Management (CBRE IM), is forward funding the development and will own and operate it once complete. Bletchley View will cater to the growing demand for affordable homes in the area, especially from young people and families, seeking quality housing within commuting distance to employment opportunities.

Members of the Godwin Developments team joined Winvic Construction, Fed3 Projects to welcome CBRE Investment Management (second from right) and Councillors Nazir and Imran (third and fourth from right) to tour the Bletchley View construction site

Leading national firm Winvic Construction Ltd is the main contractor and you can read below the latest news from Bletchley View with the Quarterly Project Update:

https://godwingroup.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Bletchley-View-Jan-2023.pdf