The new premium appeal of South London

South London’s leisure property appeal has grown substantially over the last ten years. Here, our London restaurant property specialists will examine just what is making South London an attractive prospect for top-end luxury investments as well as more informal, through decidedly upmarket, leisure concepts.

Nine Elms

London leisure loves nothing more than a landmark. Battersea Power Station is onto Phase 4A of its redevelopment project, which, including the initial ￡8bn restoration of the station itself, is estimated to have attracted ￡15bn of investment. To put that in perspective, the huge Olympic redevelopment of Stratford was around ￡9bn.

In addition to the range of residential property, the completion of Phase 4 will see the area given 12,000 sq ft of new leisure property space. Combine this with the planned extension of the Northern line into the area and Battersea becomes a hot leisure and retail property location, even despite growing negatively around the residential property units.

Brixton

The Shoreditichification of the area around Brixton tube station is a prime example of the leisure property clustering we wrote about in June. From this trendy South London enclave, independent entrepreneurs such as Honest Burgers and Franco Manca have gone on to form highly successful chains, with Boqueria’s tapas and Kaosarn also thriving.

As the larger chains and operators move into this area, the smart investor will look at where the next independent cluster will establish itself. One promising area is Balham, which has seen a 21% residential property rise over 2014, indicative of the areas appeal.

Alternatively, independents may establish themselves to the east of Brixton. The bridge arches around Peckham Rye station are filling up with small operations such as Bar Story and Brick Brewery.

South-East London

Camberwell, Peckham and New Cross have a shared cultural sensibility. Camberwell College of Arts and Goldsmiths, as well as a plethora of University of London residential campuses ensure that this belt of neighbourhoods is always full of young, artistic students and young trendy professionals seeking cheaper rent with quick access to central London.

This market is open to interesting, novel leisure concepts, and represent ￡2.4bn of retail and leisure spending power. This gives the South East a unique appeal for premium, informal operations for those who want interesting concepts more than a high-end, formal service.

Already thriving in this unique environment are The Camberwell Kitchen’s gluten-free supper club concept, The Four Quarters bar-cum-videogame arcade and Begging Bowl’s boutique Thai cuisine. 

If you are looking to find leisure property in South London, get in touch with one of our experienced London restaurant property experts today.