Hark Group, one of the UK’s leading retail asset managers with a focus on transforming town and city centres, announces the acquisition of Rivington Land, the development management business that specialises in complex urban environments.
The new enlarged company will be named RivingtonHark and will immediately become one of the most active and experienced teams focused on delivering the rejuvenation of UK town centres through specialist development and asset management, at the outset managing projects with a value in excess of £700 million.
Hark Group, one of the UK’s leading retail asset managers with a focus on transforming town and city centres, announces the acquisition of Rivington Land, the development management business that specialises in complex urban environments. The new enlarged company will be named RivingtonHark and will immediately become one of the most active and experienced teams focused on delivering the rejuvenation of UK town centres through specialist development and asset management, at the outset managing projects with a value in excess of £700 million.
Working alongside local authorities, pension funds and private equity investors, RivingtonHark will invest in mixed use projects to create vibrant and sustainable places where people will want to work, live and play.
RivingtonHark is already working on major projects including Swansea, Liverpool, Chester, Norwich, Newcastle, Lincoln and Bury, all of which involve the repurposing and repositioning of retail to varying degrees and incorporate a wide range of new uses including a new arena and conference centre, residential accommodation, offices, public realm and leisure uses.
David Lewis, founder of Rivington Land, joins Mark Williams and David Henderson-Williams as Board Director and co-owner of the business. David Lewis will continue to focus on development, Mark Williams will lead the investment side and David Henderson-Williams will run the asset management team.
David Lewis commented, “Both companies are passionate about town centres and share an optimism about their future in this evolutionary market. There are very few businesses in the UK that can match our level of expertise and enthusiasm for delivering meaningful change. Combining forces is the right way to grow the company and position ourselves to take full advantage of the opportunities that lie ahead.”
David Henderson-Williams, founder of Hark Group remarked, “The two firms are highly complementary in terms of personnel, skills and corporate relationships. The combination of our abilities to invest, our proven asset management track records and Rivington’s exceptional development management capabilities, points towards a very exciting future.”
Mark Williams, Director of Hark and former president of Revo said, “I have known David Lewis professionally for over 15 years since his time at Centros Miller and have great respect for his career achievements including establishing Rivington as a significant development management business. I am very much looking forward to working with David and his vastly experienced team to grow our business together. I think that everyone accepts that investing in retail means you must have the ability and imagination to transform places, which we now have it in abundance. We have recently strategically teamed up with new investment partners and the combined resources will allow us to significantly add to our already diverse portfolio of high profile projects.”
