Trafford Council, advised by CBRE’s Investment Advisory team, part of CBRE Capital Advisors, took part in The Hut Group’s (“THG”) £1bn funding process by providing £70m of debt facilities to finance the development of its new Headquarters at Manchester Airport.

The Headquarters will provide over 300,000 sq ft of office space and car parking facilities and will be developed by Airport City Manchester. THG is a world-leading digital-first consumer brand group within Beauty and Wellness. The development of their new HQ forms part of a much larger expansion of the company and the ongoing development of Manchester Airport.

The loan adds to a portfolio of prudent real estate investments made by Trafford Council in the last three years with CBRE Capital Advisors acting as Investment Advisor. The return on investment from the loan will enable Trafford to support vital public services whilst making a significant contribution to local economic and job growth. On completion, the THG headquarters will house over 10,000 staff.

Cllr Tom Ross, Trafford Council’s Executive Member for Finance and Investment, said: “The Council’s investment will support huge job creation and economic growth in a key Greater Manchester location at Manchester Airport.”

“At a time when local authority budgets remain under pressure this addition to the Council’s investment strategy is very welcome. The Council’s investment strategy continues to provide us with revenue which we can then use to support our frontline services.”

A senior executive for THG said: “As we expand on our ambitious global proposition, we are committed to continued investment in the North West, where the business was founded. By partnering with Trafford Council, we can create a broad base of employment across technology, marketing, content, digital commerce and distribution industries in the region, which will be crucial to the North West’s growth and vision.”

Henry Randolph, Director, Investment Advisory, CBRE added: "This is a great example of our ability to identify high quality schemes and borrowers and then structure a debt package that provides appropriate risk and return for Trafford Council whilst delivering competitive terms for the borrower by offering flexibility, certainty and speed of delivery.