In London, our growing partnerships with property occupiers and the delivery of innovative services supporting their operations drove leasing success in 2021, at a time where a quarter of the year was spent in lockdown and when the subsequent rise of the Omicron variant shook business confidence.

Among our new services was the creation of the Tenant Investment Fund, which supports business expansion when bank funding is constrained, and a market-first simplified lease requiring no negotiation, reducing time and costs involved in signing and opening new premises.

Across the year, 33 new brands opened their doors in Mayfair and Belgravia including Barbara Sturm’s UK debut and JKS’ latest restaurant Bibi. This drove low vacancy at the year end of c.3%, versus a UK average of 14%.

Similar work to drive long-term success and create exciting experiences for visitors also saw vacancies at Liverpool ONE fall to c3%, with sales growth of 11.5% vs 2019.