Good morning.
As the head of the Office for National Statistics says a third wave in autumn is “inevitable”(£), fears are growing that even more retailers could collapse or slash stores.
The number of store closures has risen to a record 48 per day(£), with more than 17,500 chain stores disappearing in 2020. PwC and the Local Data Company say that the worst is yet to come.
Next, meanwhile, is planning to become the Ocado of fashion(£), as it extends its online platform to host smaller brands.
Despite all this, Hammerson saw the biggest share price rise of any company in the FTSE 100 or 250 on Friday, as new boss Rita-Rose Gagné vowed to “stabilise the ship” after writing down the value of its estate by almost £2bn(£).
Meanwhile Capital & Regional is battered but still standing, says The FT (£).
Regal London has paid Dominvs £35m for a 3.6-acre site in Wembley for a £270m mixed-tenure beds and sheds scheme.
It’s a seller’s market(£) in resi, according to a new survey.
The chairman of London-based agency Expedite Group has set up the Commercial Tenants Association to ensure “fairer deals” and more protection from landlords, after a survey found that nearly three-quarters (73%) of office occupiers were dissatisfied with aspects of their tenancies.
Meanwhile, Britain’s biggest car parks group, NCP, has stopped paying its landlords(£) and asked them to cut its £30m rent arrears in half.
And Britain’s largest independent chain of petrol stations is to spend £400m on its 918 forecourts(£), installing EV chargers and improving the retail offer.
Tory chairman Ben Elliot will today be questioned over whether money from party donors has been used to pay for the Downing Street flat refurb(£).
Bristol could become the biggest city in England and Wales to ban lapdancing clubs(£).
The FT (£) takes a look at Lloyds Bank’s plans to become a large-scale private landlord…
… As a freeze on benefits risks leaving tenants with thousands of pounds of rent arrears.
Meanwhile, New Zealand(£) could have the right idea as it tackles soaring house prices.
Savills has appointed Great Portland Estates development manager Kat Norton to lead a new development management function, which will act as “the missing piece in the jigsaw” for its development business.
Goldman Sachs has had enough of this home-working nonsense and wants all staff back in the office(£) by the end of the summer. He previously said by the beginning of next year.
The Sunday Times (£) says that hybrid working could prove to be a two-headed monster.
And working from home faces an existential threat anyway, as BT’s workers move closer to voting for a national strike.
But it also plans to hand a further 4,000 red phone boxes(£) to communities, to be turned into mini-libraries, defibrillator sites and art galleries, so that’s nice.
Hull is splashing out £4.6m to resurrect its outdoor swimming pool, joining Brighton and Bath in its new-found love of the lido.
The Guardian has a piece about the waning fortunes of the Trump International Hotel in Washington, which was once seen as the second White House.
In Scotland townsfolk have risen up to prevent the sale of a Jacobite hero’s castle(£). They worry Bonnie Dundee’s home could be bought by resi developers, or worse, the English.
And finally, while some have spent the lockdown(s) cursing the too-narrow confines of their home/office/prison, others have had a better time of it. Take the Stoutes, for instance. They used the profits from their £1.6bn government PPE contract to buy a £6m mansion(£) in the Home Counties. Or the Sussexes. Apparently Meghan and Harry’s Montecito manor has tripled in value(£) since they bought it just nine months ago. But if you yearn for the space and lifestyle of the estate-owning elite, but can’t quite find the requisite millions down the back of your sofa, have no fear. The very kind owners of Kirtlington Park(£) are offering their 18th century mansion to well-behaved guests wanting to enjoy the country life, all for a mere £28,000 per week. Strutt & Parker is also marketing a 14-bed stately home in Bucks for a snip at £50,000 a month. Or you could try to get an invitation to stay with Harry and Megs. Just don’t drop by unannounced(£).
