Liberty Sold To Clear Debt

Retail Stores, owner of landmark London store Liberty, has agreed a £66.5m sale of its store and office complex in Regent Street. Retail Stores, who own luxury boutique Liberty, have announced the sale of the landmark store for £66.5m, in a bit to clear the store's debts.

Liberty will continue to lease its retail and office space from the new owner. Lasenby House, Kingly Street and the Liberty Island site in Regent Street are being acquired by the Great Victoria Partnership, a joint venture between Great Portland Estates and Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society. The two properties currently generate an annual rental income of around £4.4m.

Retail Stores, which is 68 per cent owned by Marylebone Warwick Balfour said the proceeds will be used to repay its entire £61.9m debt. Lasenby House is a freehold property with office space let to Liberty, while the Liberty Island site is on a lease from the Crown Estate Commissioners, expiring in 2051. It includes retail and office space, with tenants including Liberty, Gap and Barclays Bank.

Richard Balfour-Lynn, chairman of Retail Stores, said: "This is a positive deal for the company as it enables us to repay all our debt and focus resources on developing Liberty designed luxury goods aimed at the international market.

"As a result of this sale, the financial structure of Retail Stores has been greatly enhanced, thus underpinning the core operations of the business. Since Autumn 2004, Liberty has been proving increasingly popular and our sales have improved dramatically at a time when many retail groups have reported flat or declining sales."

Toby Courtauld, chief executive of Great Portland Estates, said: "We announced the formation of our joint venture relationship with Liverpool Victoria in November last year. These latest acquisitions will see this partnership fully invested in first class assets with real angles for value creation."

"We are delighted to be buying into the renaissance of Regent Street and to be able to build on our existing relationship with the Crown Estate."