Experienced operator secures leasehold of ‘Best-One’ convenience store in Portsmouth
Specialist business property advisor, Christie & Co is pleased to announce the leasehold sale of Gemini News in Portsmouth to experienced retail operator, Manikkam Amalanathan, and brother-in-law, Umeshan Kandasamy. Funding for the purchase was secured through Christie & Co's sister company, commercial finance specialist, Christie Finance.
Gemini News is a profitable, long-established convenience store situated on a busy shopping parade in the mainly residential neighbourhood of North End on Portsea Island.
The convenience store sees extremely high footfall and benefits from its large and loyal customer base. It is a smart-looking, refitted convenience store and also lies under the ‘best-one’ brand.
New owners to the convenience store, Manikkam and Umeshan bring together 18 years’ experience within the retail industry. Manikkam will predominantly manage the business on a daily basis, whilst Umeshan will provide additional guidance and who expects to spend two to three days a week supporting the business.
Finance Consultant at Christie Finance, Neil Collins, secured funding for the acquiring pair and comments, “Many believe that obtaining funding for leasehold businesses in the convenience retail sector can be difficult, and sometimes impossible, to pursue. However, I am pleased to have been able to prove this differently, helping Manikkam and Umeshan to obtain the funding they required. I would like to wish them the very best with the business going forward.”
Tom Glanvill, Associate Director at Christie & Co, arranged the sale and also comments, “Gemini News is a long-established convenience store with a great local reputation, and I would like to wish the new owners every success with this venture. I have sold 35 retail businesses this year, with this sale forming a part of the figure, and this just goes to show the strong level of interest seen for this type of business.”
Manikkam and Umeshan spoke about their experience working with Christie Finance to secure funding, “It’s been a pleasure working with Neil and Tom at the Christie Network on the purchase of Gemini News. They have both been very professional in supporting me and my partners to complete the purchase on time. We are looking forward to making our mark on this locally well-known shop, looking at possibilities of adding a food-to-go section and a Costa Express within the store to attract more customers, and we also have a few other ideas in the pipeline.”
For further information on this press release, contact:
Bronte Hughes, Corporate Communications Executive
P: 07721 420 656 or E: bronte.hughes@christie.com
Contact the agent:
Tom Glanvill, Associate Director
T: 07526 176 391 or E: tom.glanvill@christie.com
Contact the finance broker:
Neil Collins, Finance Consultant
T: 07548 705 370 or E: neil.collins@christiefinance.com
