A landmark office building in Manchester city centre has been acquired by commercial property giant Bruntwood Group in a multi-million pound deal.
The grade II-listed Pall Mall Court has been bought from the Ardstone Regional Office Fund, a joint venture fund between Ardstone Capital and CBRE IM.
Constructed in the 1960s, the King Street building was refurbished in 2002 and contains retail space on the ground floor with offices above. It contains 83,808 sq ft of office space across three blocks.
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In a statement, Bruntwood said the purchase has been "driven by the resurgence of demand for inspirational, flexible office space" in the city centre.
Bruntwood Works, the workspace, retail and leisure arm of the group, will now design, develop and deliver the refurbishment of the building.
The ground floor will be transformed to feature a new "hospitality-led arrival experience" and will incorporate outside seating in the external piazza, creating a new public space.
Bruntwood Group commercial director Andrew Butterworth said: "Manchester’s city centre is back and with it the increased demand for spaces that allow innovation and enterprise to flourish.
"Pall Mall is one of the city’s most recognisable buildings and we’re excited to not only bring it into our portfolio but to invest in an exciting transformation.
"Work patterns have changed since the pandemic but this has made the functionality of the office even more critical.
"They not only need to be places that people want to go to, but spaces that enable teams to come together and do their best work."
Ciara Keeling, CEO of Bruntwood Works, added: "We are thrilled to be announcing the latest building in our Pioneer scheme, which is creating the future of workspace design with unique retail and leisure offerings.
"Pall Mall is a beautiful grade II-listed building with enormous potential, in a thriving part of the city centre, so it was the perfect choice for us.
"And we’ve only just begun. Our ambition continues to be to bring innovation to the forefront of Manchester’s office market, providing unparalleled workspaces that offer inspiration and flexibility while also championing wellbeing, hospitality and sustainability.
"This latest acquisition marks an exciting milestone in the growth and development of our Manchester portfolio, bolstered by its position within a cluster of our existing properties.
"We always see huge potential in the city and we are excited to continue to grow our Pioneer programme over the coming years."
Mike Cecil, head of UK asset management at Ardstone Capital, said: "We are delighted that Pall Mall Courts undoubted potential will now be realised and that it will make a great contribution to the centre of Manchester.
"The sale will now allow us to concentrate on further projects in Edinburgh and Bristol.
CBRE and Addleshaw Goddard LLP advised Bruntwood Works on the transaction.
Ardstone Capital was advised by Avison Young and Pinsent Masons.
