Colliers beefs up retail expertise with acquisition of UK agent

Colliers International has acquired UK retail property specialist Briant Champion Long (BCL) in a move aimed at strengthening its retail resources in London and mainland Europe.

The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

London-based BCL will be integrated into the operations of Colliers UK and be led by managing partner Mark Phillipson.

The firm employs more than 30 professionals and provides agency, investment and lease advisory consultancy to a wide range of retail clients, landlords and investors. It is currently engaged in letting more than 370,000 m2 of retail space in the UK. Over the past year, it has completed more than 800 transactions and acted on more than £425 mln (€511 mln) of investment transactions.

‘BCL complements our existing retail business and is consistent with our aggressive growth strategy for the UK,’ commented Tony Horrell, CEO of Colliers UK and Ireland. ‘Combining our capabilities in this area establishes us as one of the top players in the retail agency, investment and advisory sectors in the UK, and leverages our global platform providing retail property specialty services across major markets in Europe and internationally.’

‘The addition of BCL and its strong group of professionals strengthens our capabilities in the UK and is another step forward in our strategy to grow and consolidate the commercial real estate industry in Europe and globally,’ said Chris McLernon, CEO of Colliers International, EMEA. ‘This transaction is another example of our disciplined approach -partnering with high-quality professionals that are aligned with our culture, while deploying our capital prudently to grow our business internally and through acquisition’.

Colliers International is owned by Toronto-listed FirstService Corporation, which manages more than 232 million m2 of residential and commercial properties through three global platforms: Colliers International, FirstService Residential; and Property Services.