Tritax buys warehouse operated by Unilever

Tritax Big Box REIT has paid £44.25m for a distribution centre in Staffordshire operated by Unilever.

The 541,157 sq ft warehouse in Cannock was purpose-built for Unilever and extended in 2012. It is in a "core Midlands distribution location" with easy access to the M6 motorway to reach Birmingham and Manchester airports and ports in Liverpool and Avonmouth, Tritax said.

The site has a new 10-year lease with an upward-only rent review every five years, indexed to the retail price index. It is Tritax's second warehouse let to Unilever, one of the world's biggest producers of consumer goods.

Tritax is a FTSE 250 investment trust that invests in big UK logistics warehouse assets that seeks to capitalise on strong demand from companies and limited supply of very large "big box" warehouses.

Colin Godfrey, a partner at Tritax, said: "This property plays a key role in Unilever's supply chain and has benefited from significant capital investment with a high level of automation. This purchase adds to our portfolio's core foundation income, strengthens our existing customer relationship with Unilever, provides geographic diversity and offers good potential for rental growth."