Leading diversified professional services and investment management company Colliers (NASDAQ and TSX: CIGI) is pleased to announce it has been appointed as sole agent by the landlord to sell a portion of the retail podium spreading across the ground to the third floor at 525-543A Nathan Road (the “Property”). The property is to be sold on an “as-is” basis with existing tenancies.

Sitting on the junction of Nathan Road and Waterloo Road, the property presents a rare opportunity to acquire a large retail podium in Yau Tsim Mong District with a total gross area of 62,300 sq. ft.. It is designed to cater to a range of businesses from jewellery retailers, shops to restaurants, offering approximately 6,600 sq. ft ground floor area. With its own entrance on Nathan Road and escalators and three elevators connecting the first to the third floor, the property can be reimagined as a themed mall.

The retail podium comes with an over 300-feet wide signage space on its external walls, facing Nathan Road and Waterloo Road. With its prominent position attracting both pedestrians and drivers, the signage space provides a great advertising platform for the podium itself and its tenants alike, and can be leased out to generate more rental income.

The property situates adjacent to Exit A1 and B1 of Yau Ma Tei MTR station and many tourist attractions, including Yau Ma Tei fruit market, Yau Ma Tei Theatre, Yau Ma Tei Red Brick Building, Broadway Cinematheque, Old Yau Ma Tei Police Station, Tin Hau Temple and Temple Street night market. The area is also home to more than 20 hotels of various types, including Hotel Ease, The Cityview, Holiday Inn Express Hong Kong Mongkok, Lumine Hotel and M1 Hotel Yau Ma Tei, which are very popular among tourists.

Retail leads the way in economic recovery as border fully reopens

Stanley Wong, Co-head of Capital Markets & Investment Services at Colliers, said: “Following the full reopening of border and the removal of the mask mandate in Hong Kong, the recovery of inbound tourism continues to boost retail sales. The sales of jewellery and luxury goods, apparel, medicine, beauty and electronic products had seen a 20% to 60% increase in the first quarter. The upward momentum has spurred leasing activities of large retail space recently. Examples include Matsumoto Kiyoshi taking up some 10,000 sq. ft. of floor space on the ground and first floors of Grand Plaza in Mong Kok and GU leasing about 7,018 sq. ft. on the first and second floors of Yau Shing Commercial Centre also in Mong Kok. Retailers’ expansion reflects their growing confidence as more and more inbound tourists return to Hong Kong and coupled with rental adjustment, some opt for larger spaces. The catering industry is also picking up, serving more dine-in customers and seeing a rise in profits. We may see restaurant groups opening more outlets in the near future. Spurred by the momentum of economic recovery, Colliers predicts that annual rental rate for stores in core retail districts will see a year-on-year growth of 8%.”

Matthew Cheng, Director of Capital Markets & Investment Services at Colliers, said: “With a wide frontage, the property enjoys excellent transportation connectivity and is located in a core area of the city. As Nathan Road and Waterloo Road are two of the main roads in Kowloon, the neighbourhood is packed with people and vehicles day or night. The property includes a sizable ground-floor unit at Nathan Road , which can be let to jewellery shops or restaurants, or be subdivided and rented out to pharmacies, clinics and beauty salons. Rents for ground-floor shops in the area is about HK$150 to HK$200 per sq. ft.. Each of the first, second and third floors of the property is about 16,000 to 18,000 sq. ft., which were previously home to medical centres, digital product mall, restaurants and bank branches. Situated at a popular destination for locals and tourists alike and close to many hotels, the property is an ideal place to open a food court. Designed for high traffic capacity, it has its own entrance on Nathan Road and is equipped with escalators and multiple elevators, which help restaurants increase their turnover. As tertiary institutions are offering more courses and the number of overseas students is increasing, the property is an ideal spot for setting up learning centres outside of campus because of its convenient location and practical layout. In addition, it is a great space for developers to set up sales offices and show flats thanks to its excellent connectivity and prime signage space. Taking reference from the transactions in the neighbourhood, the rental price of the first, second and third floors is about HK$35 to HK$60 per sq. ft.. If new leases are to be signed for the entire property, the estimated total monthly rental income can go up to HK$3 million to HK$3.5 million and, a return rate of over 5% is achievable.”