Evolution stands still
February 2009
Faced with the prospect of having to move out of its Fitzroy Street location due to spiralling rentals and difficult market conditions, specialist gift shop, Evolution, turned to Cambridge’s leading chartered surveyors, Januarys, to see if it could find a suitable solution.
Understanding the importance of not wanting to move away from its existing and established customer base, Januarys’ Desmond Hirsch set to work on finding an alternative unit that would allow the retailer to continue to evolve in Cambridge. The result - a short move from No 5 to No 34 Fitzroy Street.
Utilising its wealth of contacts, Januarys acted quickly and (via Bidwells) opened discussions with Clare College, owners of the vacant building at 34 Fitzroy Street. Recognising present market conditions the college was prepared to be flexible with its lease terms and rents and a new ten year lease was successfully negotiated and agreed.
Evolution completed the short move and opened the doors to its new shop on Valentines Day.
Desmond Hirsch a Director at Januarys, who handled the negotiations and managed the process, comments, “In these difficult trading conditions it was incredibly satisfying to not only be able to help a well established Cambridge retailer but to be able to acquire a college owned building on favourable terms.
“The media and various opinion formers have been quick to blame the colleges for high rents for retail outlets in the past. In this case, however, Clare College proved itself far more understanding of the current climate than Prudential, owners of Evolution’s previous shop. This was a great project to work on; we act for a number of retailers and landlords and have a lot of experience in findings solutions that work for both parties.”