Entrepreneur David Aspin, 57, may spend most of his time in his villa in the hills overlooking Florence, but the sun is now also shining closer to home – on his White Rose Office Park, on the edge of Leeds.
The founder of asset management firm Munroe K has tapped into European funds’ increasing interest in the UK regions by selling a 50% stake in the 470,000 sq ft business park – his prized asset – to Orion Capital Managers for around £130m.
The deal means that Munroe K has the backing of one of Europe’s largest hedge funds as it plots the future of the 27-acre White Rose. Just as important as Orion’s deep pockets, admits Aspin, is the knowledge of the European real estate market that the fund can bring to the table. “They ask questions I hadn’t even thought of,” he says.
Kent-born Aspin began his long association with the Yorkshire property market in the late 1970s. While working for Guardian Royal Exchange Properties, the young surveyor was sent to Leeds to find tenants for the Bond Street Centre shopping scheme, which later became Leeds Shopping Plaza and is now part of Land Securities’ Trinity Leeds development.
After high-ranking roles with County & District Properties and hotel group Stakis, Aspin was appointed by British Aerospace and Arlington with a view to selling off the defence firm’s property assets during the early 1990s recession.
After struggling to find a buyer, Aspin was himself offered a portfolio of British Aerospace assets in 1994, which he bought for £107m with backing from a German bank.
Within that portfolio was the White Rose Office Park, purchased for around £40m. Today it is valued at more than six times that amount. Aspin formed Munroe K in 1995 and the firm has subsequently sold most of the portfolio to concentrate on White Rose.
To those in Yorkshire property circles who know him, Aspin is a gregarious figure who is eager to get personally involved in discussions with his occupiers.
“David is an extremely likeable individual, with a determination to get the deal done,” says Jones Lang LaSalle’s Jeff Pearey, his agent of 15 years.
The consummate Englishman abroad with more than a dash of Italian flair, Aspin bought his first villa in Florence in 2004 – the Villa Serena – initially as a holiday home. But taking to the relaxed pace of life, he soon relocated with his wife and three children to Italy.
Having renovated his first villa, Aspin and family now live in the property next door, and his business dealings are frequently conducted from his home office and video conferencing facilities.
Aspin is also a car enthusiast and, rather than endure flights from Italy to the UK, often commuted from Florence to Leeds in his custom-built Ferrari, while conducting conference calls en route.
But he says he is between Ferraris at the moment, having swapped his latest for a “more practical” four-wheel drive. His next commute to Leeds, he adds, will be on Ryanair.
