Mid Counties Co-op in Earlswood, an affluent village of Warwickshire between Solihull and Redditch, has been sold through Christie & Co.
After launching the store to the open market, Christie & Co received strong interest, attracting 13 offers from independent and corporate retailers. Following a best and final bid process, a local independent retailer was the successful bidder with their funding being arranged by Christie Finance.
Dave Morris, Director in Christie & Co’s Retail team handled the sale and said, “The store presented a great opportunity for an incoming retailer, located in this popular village in Warwickshire. It benefitted from a flat above and had the potential to extend the store itself into the car park to the rear.
'The new owner saw this opportunity and is looking forward to making changes to the store in the near future. It is a great benefit to the community that the Post Office will remain in the store.”
The new owner closed the store temporarily so that they could make some changes to the trading area but they have now re-opened with the support of national independent symbol group, Nisa.
The new owner commented, “We are delighted to have secured this store. We closed the store temporarily so that we could make some changes but hope that the customers will benefit from its recent reopening.
'We are pleased to have retained the Post Office as this is a really important service to the community. Dave Morris at Christie & Co and Christie Finance were a great help to us during the process.”
Ed Brown from Christie Finance, who secured the funding for the new buyer, added, “We are experiencing an increase in demand from business owners and buyers since the COVID-19 pandemic hit earlier this year.
'Banks have been under pressure to push through the CBILS and Bounce Back loans and have welcomed our assistance with owners looking to fund new opportunities. The banks are still lending, and we are well placed to help with the funding process.”
