Tower 42 Becomes City’s Newest Retail Hotspot with £50M Investment
Holding the title of London’s tallest skyscraper for 30 years, the iconic Tower 42 on Old Broad Street is making waves once again. Following a £50 million investment, the Tower 42 Estate is soon to become the City’s largest retail destination.
New Attractions
The new development will be known as the Avenue; a pedestrian walkway bordered by retail units that will wrap around Tower 42. Comprising of 77,000 sq. ft., traders taking space in this new hotspot include Joe and the Juice, Marks and Spencer food hall, restaurant and bakery brand Paul, salon operator Ted’s Grooming and gastropub Broadleaf.
As well as places to shop, drink and dine, the Avenue will also feature newly installed bronze sculptures by artist William Kentridge. One of his most famous works, Shadow Quartet, will appear within the instillation creating a further attraction for surrounding businesses and visitors.
The History of Tower 42
The 182 meter Tower 42 was Britain’s first skyscraper and originally opened in the mid-1980s as the NatWest Tower. Designed by Richard Seifert the building is a significant structure within the City. Today, South African billionaire Nathan Kirsh, who purchased the site back in 2011 for £282.5 million owns the Estate and has ensured the Tower receives rolling upgrades ever since.
Most recently the building benefited from a £10 million injection to install new Osit lifts that move at speeds of five metres per second! Furthermore, a portion of the £50 million proposed for The Avenue will go towards upgrading the triple height glass entrance of the Tower 42 lobby with new flooring, ceilings, lighting and furniture. The architects assigned to the project are Stiff and Trevillion.
Positive Economics
Despite recent worries from economical occurrences such as Brexit, the Tower 42 board still holds plenty of faith in London’s financial and business market. Philip Lewis, CEO of the Estate says, “Affordable office space, world class retail and leisure amenities, along with the arrival of Crossrail in 2019, will reinforce Liverpool Street’s position as the epicentre of London’s business community,” adding, “The City is crying out for more quality retail space … The Avenue responds to this and provides the occupiers on the Estate and in the surrounding area with modern amenities.”
With 500,000 sq. ft. of office, retail and leisure space available across five buildings and 4,000 people working on the estate, there is already a very large clientele for The Avenue. The world’s largest office supplier Regus are located within the Tower itself while the rapidly advancing co-working company WeWork have recently taken space within the Estate’s 15 Bishopsgate.
Tower 42 Office Space
Maintaining the impressive image of this building Regus have also recently refurbished their workspace within the Tower. Despite maintaining professionality, Regus’ modern offices incorporate colour and comfort through the likes of breakout spaces and co-working settings. However, essential features such as strong grade business Wi-Fi and supportive onsite staff have not been compromised on either.
Giving a contemporary feel to their offices through refurbishment helps Regus to attract a broader range of companies, both start-ups and established businesses in everything from tech to finance. In recent times companies are seeking support, collaboration and ingenuity from their workplace and the people in it no matter what stage of business they’re in.
So despite being outdone in height by the City’s impressive modern architecture, it seems that Tower 42 is still a front runner when it comes to originality. We at Londonoffices cannot wait to see The Avenue and the new Regus fit out in all its glory.