Address
Hambleden House
19-26 Pembroke Street Lower
Dublin 2
D02 WV96
Ireland
»Map
Contact Us
Phone: +353 (1) 6477900
Fax: +353 (1) 6477901
Email: info@bannon.ie
Background
The Property Management team at Bannon currently manage over 70 commercial sites across Ireland. The portfolio is made up of Shopping Centres, Retail Parks, Business Parks and Office Parks.
In recent years there has been an unquestionable shift in weather patterns, and this is particularly noticeable in the colder winter months. One such example was the severe weather experienced in February 2018 when Storm Emma hit Ireland. During the course of the storm, we saw significant accumulations of snow across our sites and temperatures as low as –11.0°C.
In any given year we see c.100 million visits to Bannon managed sites across the country and maintaining safe access to these sites is a crucial part of our role as Property Managers. We manage this risk by appointing contractors to carry out gritting services during periods of cold weather and snow clearance when required.
A number of years ago we recognised the obvious synergies associated with managing our winter maintenance services on a portfolio basis. For that reason, we have split our portfolio into three distinct zones (see below) and we tender the contract every 3 years.
Zone 1 – Greater Dublin Area
Zone 2 – South & South East
Zone 3 – Midlands, West & North West
Tender
A sub-team of Property Managers were appointed to oversee the tendering of the Winter Maintenance contract for the portfolio. The following tender process occurred;
Phase 1 – Review of portfolio geography and creation of 3 distinct zones
Phase 2 – Preparation of Request for Tender (RFT) document
Phase 3 – Shortlisting of suitable contractors including a visit to contractors’ facilities
Phase 4 – Issue RFT to shortlisted parties
Phase 5 – Review & analysis of tenders
Phase 6 – Selection & contract award to winning tenderers
In total the RFT was issued to 10 contractors and we received 6 complete tender submissions. The submissions were assessed and ranked based on pre-set criteria. All but one tenderer submitted a proposal for all three zones. The sub-team assessed the proposals and made a recommendation to the directors of the department to appoint three separate contractors (one per zone). This recommendation was followed and the contracts were awarded to the following parties;
Zone 1 – Greater Dublin Area – SAP Landscapes
Zone 2 – South & South East – O’Brien Facilities
Zone 3 – Midlands, West & North West – Ken Fitzsimons Landscaping
Benefits
The benefits of carrying out a procurement process of this nature are far reaching, to include;
Overall, we have seen significant benefits in procuring our Winter Maintenance services on a portfolio wide basis. Our retail clients can enjoy consistency of service across all sites. With a proactive and data driven approach, we ensure that footfall does not drop and visitor health and safety is managed.
Neil Bannon is a leading expert on retail property in Dublin. In the upcoming December 2021 issue of the Dublin Economic Monitor, Neil provides his thoughts on the future of the Capital’s retail core.
In advance of the publication, the below video gives a snapshot of Neil’s views on Dublin’s retail sector and the outlook for the future.
The retail industry in Ireland employs c285,000 people. That is 12.5% of the working population. As leaders in the sector, we are very proud at Bannon to manage over 50 shopping destinations across the country. These destinations are home to over 1,100 businesses who in turn employ 10’s of thousands of local people. Supporting trade locally is supporting your local community. As we reset after COVID, make the right choice, shop local.
Another first for Blanchardstown Centre and part of a run of some exciting announcements for the scheme. Having the first Sky Store in Ireland will bring some interesting animation and events to the centre.
We are delighted to have advised Falcon AM and Blanchardstown Centre on this letting working with Eoin Feeney on the successful deal.
Penneys will bring its ‘Amazing Fashion at Amazing Prices’ to The Square Town Centre as the much-loved iconic Irish retailer announces that a new Penneys store will open at the centre, marking the continued expansion of the brand in Ireland. The new store will provide a huge boost to the local economy and create 300 new jobs for the community, with doors opening to customers next year.
The new store will be located on the ground floor of The Square Town Centre and will boast 43,000 sq ft of retail space which will feature Penneys’ famous affordable fashion favourites, including the latest seasonal trends along with everyday must-haves for everyone. The much-anticipated arrival of Penneys to The Square Town Centre will mark the retailer’s 37th store in Ireland; a significant milestone for the company that operates in over 395 locations across Europe and North America.
Damien O’Neill, Head of Sales, Penneys ROI, said; “We are really excited to confirm the opening of our new store in Tallaght next year. Penneys is iconic in Ireland; we have a strong presence in Dublin and across Ireland, and it’s really important to us when opening any new store, that we do so in the right location. We couldn’t wish for a better location for our next store in our home market than in The Square Town Centre. In the coming months, our teams will be working hard to bring Penneys’ unique in-store design and customer experience offering to life and we are looking forward to opening our doors to customers later next year.”
Jack Martin, Head of Retail for The Square Town Centre, said; “We are absolutely delighted with this announcement as it has been long overdue for Tallaght. Penneys is a fantastic retailer that will add a great offering to the Centre. For many years, the people of Tallaght have been very vocal in their desire to have Penneys in The Square and I have no doubt they will celebrate this news with us and make this opening a very successful and memorable one. This will bring jobs and prosperity to Tallaght and we are very excited to be partnering with such a great brand.”
Freda O’Donnell, The Square Town Centre’s asset manager from Sigma Retail Partners, said; “We are so pleased to announce that Penneys will be opening in The Square; a huge refit of the space is underway, and we are very excited with Penneys’ plans for their new store. Since we were appointed asset managers of the Square Town Centre in 2018, securing Penneys as a tenant has been a priority for Sigma Retail Partners and we are thrilled that they are joining our tenant line-up. They will no doubt be very successful, and we wish them all the best for now and the many years to come.”
Cushman and Wakefield and Bannon are joint letting agents for the owners of The Square while Penneys were advised by Savills.
The Square Town Centre was acquired by US private equity giant Oaktree Capital in 2018 and it is asset managed by Sigma Retail Partners. It currently has 160 retail units and more than 2,400 car spaces. The Square Town Centre consists of 577,500 sq. ft located on a site of 27 acres. Hugely popular with shoppers, the centre attracts footfall of over 15 million people each year.
Krispy Kreme has chosen Swords Pavilions shopping centre in North County Dublin for the site of its second store in Ireland.
The new Swords shop is due to open this winter and will be located in the former KFC unit, beside Elverys Sports and Penneys in the shopping centre.
Krispy Kreme opened its first store in Ireland – in Dublin’s Blanachardstown – in 2018.
Hammerson and Irish Life are joint owners of the Swords Pavilions shopping centre.
With over 100 retail, dining and entertainment brands at Swords Pavilions, Krispy Kreme joins The Gift Shed, a new pop-up concept by the Kilkenny Group, fashion brand Catch and music store Golden Discs as recent openings in the shopping centre.
Ciara Connolly, Head of Leasing, Ireland at Hammerson, said it was a real vote of confidence in Swords Pavilions that a household name such as Krispy Kreme has chosen to join the centre in the early stages of its Irish expansion.
Retail is back and it’s here to stay, says Christine Dolan of Quayside Shopping centre in Sligo Town.
The centre manager believes that the majority of Irish consumers prefer the social experience of a trip to the shops over the convenience of e-tail.
She told the All-Ireland Business Times that Quayside is busier than ever.
“I think people have missed coming into the shops”, she said. “It’s a totally different experience to shopping online.”
“People love the social aspect of a day out shopping and I think most people are sick of the virtual experiences – there are a lot of people who have been quite lonely through the pandemic and you can’t beat meeting up with friends for a lunch date while having a browse through the shops.”
“There’s a great buzz around at the moment and people are starting to mix again and enjoy themselves.”
A 2020 report by Deloitte found that retail is Ireland’s largest industry and the largest private sector employer, employing almost 300,000 workers – with three in four of those employed based outside of Dublin.
Quayside Shopping Centre opened its doors in 2005 as the largest shopping centre in the northwest of Ireland.
With 130,000 feet of floor space the centre boasts 43 retailers including TK Maxx, Lifestyle Sports and Next.
Quayside lost two retailers over the pandemic, one of them was a Carphone Warehouse store which was a casualty of the Group’s decision to close 80 stores in Ireland last year.
Christine revealed that units have since been filled by two new tenants with more set to come on board.
While Christine admits that competing against online retailers will be a tough challenge in the years to come, she is not worried about the long term future of her industry.
“What we’ve proven here time and time again is that we are resilient.”
“We’ve been through a recession and we’ve come out stronger on the other end so I have no doubt that we will get back to where we were pre-pandemic.”
“In fact, I think we’ll be in a better place.”
According to the Central Statistics Office’s Retail Sales Index retail sales increased by 3.3% in June this year compared to May on a seasonally adjusted basis. On an annual basis, retail volumes were 10.6 per cent higher than in June last year.
Interestingly the retail sales figure for June this year was 13.4% higher when compared to two years earlier, before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Quayside Shopping Centre recently landed its third Business All-Star Accreditation in recognition of its contribution to retail in Ireland.
Reacting to the news, Christine said: “I am delighted to be part of an ambitious All-Star Business. To be accredited for the third year in a row is a huge honour and I see it as recognition of the hard work that goes on behind the scenes.”
Quayside’s focus over the next few months is to promote the “shopping centre experience” and Christine revealed that the centre will be introducing an initiative to help local craftspeople and creators.
She said: “We have plans to relaunch our very successful Christmas markets and hope to do this a little bit early this year. The markets provide a wonderful opportunity for local traders who may have been out of work the last while and want the chance to set up a pop up shop or trading stall.”
“We really want to celebrate with our customers and give something back to the local community this year.”
To learn more about Quayside Shopping Centre Sligo, visit their All-Star showcase page here.
Hambleden House
19-26 Pembroke Street Lower
Dublin 2
D02 WV96
Ireland
»Map
Phone: +353 (1) 6477900
Fax: +353 (1) 6477901
Email: info@bannon.ie