Warehouse Sale Case Study - Sigma Aldrich Co. Ltd (Part of Merck)

Challenge

Vail Williams was appointed by life sciences company, Sigma Aldrich to advise on the sale of its industrial premises in Poole, and to search for and acquire new office space to relocate its staff to.

We advised the client on the sale of its building in Fancy Road, Poole, and the subsequent lease of offices in Merck House, Seldown Road, Poole. The building in Fancy Road had a warehouse and offices. The warehouse function moved out several years ago, leaving the office only in use.

The client required advice on the best route to market on the sale of Fancy Road, bearing in mind the purchaser needed to be identified first and then the office acquisition could take place. We needed to identify a purchaser who was prepared to wait until offices had been identified and Sigma Aldrich vacated before completing the purchase.

How we helped

• We provided advice on the best route to market, as a purchaser of their building needed to be identified first, before we the office acquisition could take place.
• We needed to identify a purchaser prepared to wait until our client had found offices, to enable Sigma Aldrich to vacate their premises, before completing the purchase.
• The building had a high office content and did not suit conventional industrial occupiers who needed more conventional space.
• Identified a purchaser and, after detailed negotiations, agreed the sale with a deferred completion.
• This gave Sigma Aldrich six months to find and acquire offices.
• Merck House was selected, and we advised on pre-acquisition due diligence.
• This included a full survey of the building, negotiation of the rental and lease terms and on-site measurements of the space.
• Introduced a fit-out contractor who advised on the design and layout of the space to ensure short term staffing needs could be met.
• Discussed relocation strategies and implemented these once the purchaser was identified.

Results

• Despite pressure to find our client a property and move, our relocation strategy was successful.
• Sigma Aldrich now occupies a high-quality office building in Poole and has transformed its working environment from the edge of an industrial estate, to a town centre location.
• We helped our client to remove the burden of an obsolete building in need of improvement, by selling it to a purchaser prepared to wait until our client had secured new premises.

“Vail Williams provided invaluable advice in a complicated transaction which required a seamless relocation from our existing facility to new office accommodation. It was necessary to constantly address and challenge the strategy as new issues came to light throughout the process.

The advice provided was carefully considered but, more importantly, Vail Williams listened to our requirements and advised accordingly resulting in the deal we all expected within the timescales anticipated.”

Terry Patch, Sigma Aldrich Co Ltd