Estate Agents sought to sell former Debenhams store on Cork's Patrick's St
The former Debenhams store at St. Patrick's Street Cork. Picture Denis Minihane.
Receivers Grant Thornton have been appointed by Bank of Ireland to oversee the sale of two former flagship stores previously occupied by British retail giant Debenhams, in Cork and Dublin.
They include the St Patrick’s Street premises in Cork city, an iconic building on the main shopping street, which operated as Roches Stores for the bones of a century before the Roche family leased it to Debenhams in 2006.
The second premises, also owned by companies associated with the Roche family, is on Dublin’s Henry St.
A spokesperson for Bank of Ireland confirmed the appointment of Grant Thornton to the .
Industry sources said they expect the receivers to request proposals from estate agents shortly with a view to awarding the listing for disposal of the buildings, both of which have remained empty since Debenhams pulled out in May 2020.
Those in the business said it was hard to predict whether interest in the 150,000 sq ft building on 1.6 acres on St Patrick’s Street, wedged between Marks & Spencer and Brown Thomas, would come from an owner/occupier or a developer, or what the sale price might be.
The Roche family previously put the St Patrick’s Street premises (excluding the main shopping mall, SuperValu section, and multi-storey carpark) up for sale four years ago with Colliers, with an unconfirmed price of €70-€75m cited, for a 5% return, but the market didn’t bite.
Accounts filed for 2019 by Dooroy Ltd, a Roche-associated company, said the group of which Dooroy is a member was “in breach of numerous covenants” in relation to Bank of Ireland loans and that “a standstill agreement” signed with the bank had expired.
Property experts suggested the future for the Cork premises might be to follow the lead of Clerys department store, which has been redeveloped as a mixed used development (retail/offices/food and beverage/rooftop bar and restaurant), named Clerys Quarter since it was sold in 2015 for €29m to investor Natrium.
Natrium in turn sold it on for more than double that amount to a three member consortium: Europa Capital, owned by the Rockerfeller group; Oakmount, a property company of Paddy McKillen Jnr and his Press-Up Entertainment partner Matt Ryan, and Core Capital.
Last week, Ken Sweeney, a director at Savills, picked up the Deal of the Year at the National Property Awards for the letting of a combined 60,000 sq ft at the new Clerys Quarter development to fashion retailers Flannels and H&M – due to open before the end of the year.
The St Patrick’s Street premises has become a ghost building since its closure, with some concerns about whether its condition has deteriorated.
It stands as a stark reminder of the effects of the pandemic, which changed shopping habits, with buyers adapting a hybrid approach of physical and online shopping.
The pandemic also saw other major retail outlets exit the high street, among them, Monsoon, Oasis, Warehouse, and Argos.
The news that agents will shortly be appointed to sell the former Debenhams outlet emerges as the high street’s fortunes seem to be improving, with fast-fashion outlet Penneys about to embark on a multi-million euro expansion (delayed by the planning process with a decision due shortly) and the pending arrival of multi-brand retailer Flannels (part of the Fraser Group) to Eason premises.
Bookseller and stationer Eason meanwhile is relocating to the ground floor of the former Victoria Hotel at 36 St Patrick Street, across the road from recently arrived Dubray Books, with menswear specialists Suit Direct taking 83-85 St Patrick Street, at the corner of Carey’s Lane.
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