Evolve Estates, part of the commercial property and investment collective M Core, has announced the acquisition of a 120,000 sq ft retail and leisure space from Lendlease at Elephant Park, one of London’s major mixed-use regeneration projects in London, Zone 1.
Located in the historic Elephant & Castle area of central London, Elephant Park is a flagship development delivered in partnership between Lendlease and Southwark Council. The project has already provided nearly 3,000 new homes and is centred around a new park featuring mature trees and green spaces.
The retail and leisure space at Elephant Park brings together a unique mix of independent retailers that cover an array of global cuisines, cafés, fitness, leisure, bars, and community purposes. In the last three months, Lendlease added 12 brands to Elephant Park ahead of sale, committing to over 40,500 sq ft of prime retail and leisure space. National names include The Gym Group, Simply Fresh, and Heavenly Desserts, while independent brands The Qube, Queer Comedy Club, The Book Elephant, EP Cuts, Jumping Bean, Jack The Chipper and Mabella have also taken space.
Sebastian Macdonald-Hall, Partner at Evolve, said: “We were attracted to Elephant Park's scale and ambition. Lendlease has delivered a hugely successful regeneration project, creating new homes, offices, green spaces, and jobs. We want to build on this by working with local stakeholders to develop a thriving and diverse community.
This is a significant acquisition for Evolve, demonstrating our ability to invest, manage and develop the retail and leisure proposition within one of London’s largest regeneration areas.
We made fourteen acquisitions in 2024, which form part of our growth plans. As a business, we will continue our growth trajectory for 2025, with further announcements coming soon.
There is a high demand for space at Elephant Park, and we will soon announce exciting new operators building on the carefully curated tenant mix that blends local, independent, and national operators.”
Connected and open to the broader Elephant & Castle area, Elephant Park has been designed with residents and visitors in mind and provides an array of public spaces for the community to gather.
With Elephant & Castle serving more than 20 million passengers a year, Elephant Park’s connectivity attracts a broad and diverse visitor demographic, which has been the main driver of its varied tenant mix. The area is within the Zone 1 transport belt, making it highly desirable as a residential hub for Central London Commuters.
Guy Thomas, Head of Retail and Place Assets at Lendlease, added: “Lendlease has led the Elephant Park journey for over a decade, starting with the creation of Artworks and evolving it into the vibrant destination it is today.
“Its development is a source of great pride for the team, as we created a thriving community hub in Zone 1, made possible by the exceptional local and national businesses that now call Elephant Park home.
“We look forward to seeing Elephant Park’s commercial ground floor flourish under Evolve’s ownership.”
CBRE acted for Lendlease, and Hampson Wall acted for Evolve.