Great Portland Estates (GPE) has announced it has let 17,700 sq ft of office space at The Hickman development at 2/4 Whitechapel Road, E1 to Four Communications Group Limited (Four), an integrated marketing and communications agency. Four will occupy the offices on the fifth, sixth and seventh floors at The Hickman on ten-year leases (with a tenant break option in the seventh year), paying an annual rent of £1.1 million. This transaction leaves a further 57,600 sq ft of which negotiations are ongoing on 20,600 sq ft.
Four is currently an existing GPE occupier at New City Court, SE1 which they will vacate once the leases complete at The Hickman. GPE says that this will enable the redevelopment of New City Court, subject to planning permission, to create a best in class office development of circa 370,000 sq ft (+380%).
About The Hickman
The Hickman is a seven storey building that has undergone an extensive refurbishment to provide 75,300 sq ft of repositioned office space. There are terraces on four floors in addition to a communal, landscaped courtyard on the ground floor. The reception area blends into Makers Café which will shortly open to the public.
Comments from Rob Russell-Smith, Senior Portfolio Manager at GPE
“This transaction typifies the approach of GPE in repositioning assets and developing strong relationships with our occupiers. We are delighted that Four has chosen to stay part of the GPE family and we look forward to continuing our relationship with them.”
Comments from Nan Williams, Four’s Group Chief Executive
“This is a pivotal moment for us and we’re glad to have secured the premium floors of this outstanding building along with the coveted outside terraces that come with it. We would like to thank GPE for enabling us to make a seamless move to the new premises in a vibrant, diverse and up and coming area. The move also allows us to reconfigure our space to suit our new way of flexible working with less desking and more collaborative, project, social and event space – something our staff have told us they want.”