Broadway shopping centre sold to European developer

The Broadway shopping centre in Bradford has been sold to a European property developer, with the new owner promising to invest £10m in the site.

Eurofund Group has bought the retail and leisure space, which had been placed on the market in September for £74m.

The centre currently has 56 stores advertised on its website including major retailers Primark, JD Sports, Boots, Superdrug and Next.

Eurofund's "enhancement plan" would improve customer experience and "strengthening the leasing mix", the group said.

Construction work on The Broadway began in 2004, but several delays meant it did not open until 2015, costing £260m.

Since then, it has 11m annual visitors, Eurofund Group said.

"The city is undergoing major transformation, and we believe The Broadway is well positioned to play a central role in that evolution," said CEO Alberto Esguevillas Lete.

"We are excited to start working with Bradford Council, occupiers and the wider community to deliver the next chapter for The Broadway."

Ian Ward, general manager at The Broadway, said there had been "strong progress" in visitor numbers in recent years.

"This marks an exciting new chapter for The Broadway and we remain committed to ensuring the centre continues to thrive for the benefit of the community, businesses and visitors alike," he added.

It emerged last year, following the centre being put on the market, that it had been run by a Fixed Charge Receiver for more than three years.

A Fixed Charge Receiver is typically appointed by a secured lender, to recover debts owed by a borrower who has defaulted on a loan secured against property or land. It is different to the appointment of administrators or liquidators.

In 2024, anchor tenant Marks & Spencer announced it would pull out of the city centre space following changing shopping habits.

Catherine Shuttleworth, retail expert from Savvy Marketing, said the centre had been "a bit of a tale of woe" since it opened a decade ago.

"It just shows the way retail has changed since The Broadway opened.

"But what I would say about it is the resurgence of Bradford, Bradford Live opening, more people spending time in Bradford, is meaning The Broadway is starting to get better footfall and it does look like it has a better future ahead of it."

Asked whether shoppers could expect new stores or leisure offerings under the change of ownership, Shuttleworth said: "They only make money when that shopping centre's full.

"So if it's full of shops, restaurants and cinemas, they need to make sure moving forward over the next 10 years they have the right tenants in place.

"The better a shopping centre is, the more of us are going to visit it, so it's in their best interest to give it a bit of a spruce up and a makeover."

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