Royal London Asset Management Property has secured Fradley Park in Lichfield, West Midlands, for €234m (£197m) in an off-market transaction that signals robust institutional appetite for prime UK logistics assets. The deal represents the largest single asset in the firm's €4bn industrial and logistics portfolio, positioning Royal London as a dominant player in Britain's Golden Triangle.
Spanning 70 hectares with 153,320 sq m of warehousing, Fradley Park stands as one of the region's most strategically located logistics hubs. The site's proximity to the A38, M6 Toll and key freight terminals, combined with a catchment of over one million workers within 30 minutes, creates a compelling investment thesis that extends beyond pure yield play. With e-commerce fulfilment driving insatiable demand for well-connected distribution space, the acquisition taps into secular growth trends that are reshaping UK supply chains and pushing logistics vacancy rates to historic lows across the Midlands.
Blue-chip tenants including DHL, Geodis, Hawkins Logistics, Palletways and Faurecia occupy the park, which employs over 4,000 people. The tenant mix provides stable income streams whilst the site's development potential offers upside through densification and modern specification upgrades, a strategy that has become increasingly attractive as land scarcity intensifies across the Golden Triangle.
Will Edwards, Portfolio Fund Manager at Royal London Asset Management Property, said: "The purchase of Fradley Park is in line with our strategy of investing at scale into high-quality assets with an attractive occupational supply/demand dynamic that offer the potential for enhanced performance. It demonstrates our conviction in the industrial market and complements our recent purchases of development land at Enderby in Leicester and Brackmills in Northampton."
Matthew Barnes, Investment Manager at Royal London Asset Management Property, said: "Fradley Park, which will be the largest industrial asset in our portfolio, has strong fundamentals and deliverable opportunities for active asset management and development. With the outlook for the Midlands logistics market remaining highly positive, this a timely and strategic addition to our portfolio."
The transaction forms part of Royal London's aggressive portfolio repositioning, which has seen six new acquisitions totalling €1.78bn GDV, including Enderby Logistics Hub (€356m GDV) and Brackmills 54 (€404m GDV), alongside €214m in strategic disposals. This capital recycling approach reflects the broader institutional shift towards prime logistics assets as investors seek inflation-protected income and long-term capital appreciation in an environment where alternative sectors face structural headwinds.
People mentioned:
Will Edwards, Portfolio Fund Manager, Royal London Asset Management Property
Matthew Barnes, Investment Manager, Royal London Asset Management Property
Image Credit: Cienna Maddocks Photography
Companies mentioned:
Royal London Asset Management, buyer
JLL, adviser to buyer
Pinsent Masons, legal adviser to buyer
Knight Frank, adviser to seller
DLA Piper, legal adviser to seller
DHL, tenant
Geodis, tenant
Hawkins Logistics, tenant
Palletways, tenant
Faurecia, tenant
