Alongside Braehead, SGS UK Retail owns Lakeside Shopping Centre, Victoria Centre in Nottingham and Harlequin Watford. The Group was restructured and refinanced in 2024 and has since delivered a comprehensive transformation programme that has significantly strengthened Braehead’s market position, operational effectiveness and sales performance.
Commenting on the transaction, Claire Barber, CEO of SGS UK Retail, said:
“The sale of Braehead was always part of our strategic plan and through active management, we have delivered substantial value enhancement and successfully stabilised the asset, attracting new brands and increasing its relevance and appeal to customers. We have created a strong platform from which Frasers Group can continue to drive growth, leveraging its retail expertise to further unlock Braehead’s potential as one of the leading retail destinations in Scotland.
In light of strong leasing performance and the significant progress made in discussions with brands, we continue to see significant value creation opportunities in the Group’s remaining three assets.”
Michael Murray, CEO at Frasers Group, commented:
“This acquisition is an important step in delivering our property ambitions and accelerating the Elevation Strategy. It cements the Group’s position as a leading operator and champion of physical retail destinations while unlocking greater opportunities to serve communities with the best brands, environments and experiences possible.”
With an annual footfall of over 15 million visitors, this acquisition reinforces Frasers Group’s commitment to investing in high-potential retail destinations and is a significant addition to its strong and growing property portfolio across the UK.
Braehead’s offer has evolved significantly over the last 12 months, including the signing of the first SuperPark in the UK, with the global indoor leisure and recreation concept set to make its debut at Braehead early next year.
Braehead has also consistently outperformed the Scottish market in the last 12 months, with footfall and spend up by 3% and 4% year-on-year respectively to the end of June, significantly ahead of the Scottish Retail-Consortium-KPMG 12-month average of 0.1% sales growth for Scotland as a whole.
The strong performance follows sustained demand from new and existing occupiers, with 16 brands renewing or extending their leases so far in 2025.
Frasers Group was advised by James Keany, Executive Director, Head of National Agency at CBRE, on this acquisition. Nick Hart, Head of Strategic Transactions – UK Capital Markets at JLL, advised SGS UK Retail.
