A Coventry freight forwarding firm is doubling in size and is moving into a historic Coventry landmark building.

Retail Transport Services is set to move into Hawkins, the office element of The Co-Operative scheme in Corporation Street, as it looks to drive the business forward.

The company, which works with suppliers and hauliers to transport freight by sea, air and road, has outgrown its current office at Kings Chambers and will move into an office double the size to accommodate its future growth plans.

‘The Co-Operative’, based at the former Co-Op building, is a mix of high-spec apartments, office, retail and leisure space by award winning developers EDG Property.

Coventry-based agents, Shortland Penn + Moore acted on behalf of EDG Property, with Retail Transport Services signing a new 10 year lease.

The Hawkins office scheme let off-plan within days of going on the market, and Retail Transport Services will join businesses including Field Overell Solicitors, Fragrances and a new restaurant which is due to be announced shortly.

Dave Hughes, managing director of Retail Transport Services said: “We are delighted to sign the lease for our new office at Hawkins and look forward to moving in at the beginning of March.

“We found that the Hawkins development was a perfect match for our business. The setting and the quality of the development reflects the work that we do here and the offices are being refurbished to a very high standard.

“We are at capacity in our current office after increasing our workforce earlier this year, but our new office is double in size and will allow us to expand.

“It demonstrates our continued success at driving Retail Transport Services forward. Due to the complexities and uncertainty of Brexit we have been working harder and smarter to ensure that we are offering the very best services to our clients.

“Our new office will future-proof the business for the next 10 to 15 years as we continue our growth.”

The Co-Operative will also be showcased at the largest international development and investment show in March. EDG Property are part of the Coventry and Warwickshire MIPIM Partnership which promotes the area at the three-day show in March.

Neil Edginton, managing director of EDG Property, said: “We are delighted to welcome Retail Transport Services to Hawkins, the first phase of The Co-Operative development.

“They are a very well-established business with international connections and we are confident the firm will continue its success in its new city centre home.

“Hawkins has been a very popular part of our development which is testament to the location and to the growing confidence in Coventry as a central area for thriving business. We look forward to announcing the new restaurant for the ground floor of Hawkins shortly.”

The company behind the iconic redevelopment of the Co-op in Coventry has announced the appointment of its agent to sell the luxury apartments – and is planning a special preview event early in the New Year where a select few will be released for sale prior to full launch.

Award winning EDG Property – which is developing The Co-Operative building in the city centre – has instructed Knight Frank to market what are being described as the highest-specification one and two-bedroom apartments seen in Coventry to date.

And potential buyers who register on the development’s database by the end of this year will be invited to an exclusive private preview in January where development details will be revealed for the first time.

Each apartment will be fitted out to a high-spec while the whole development will offer a range of extras not seen before in a city centre scheme – such as an internal residents’ park, exercise areas and private residents’ lounge with rooftop terrace.

As well as bringing the building into the 21^st Century, the developer has worked with architects Corstorphine + Wright to ensure that many of the mid-century details have been retained – including the lettering on the outside of the building.

Peter Smith, of Knight Frank, said Coventry was crying out for the development of The Co-Operative.

He said: “Coventry’s profile has grown and improved massively in recent years and that is set to continue.

“The city centre is going through big improvements and The Co-Operative will be a big part of that in terms of its residential offer.

“Coventry city centre hasn’t seen a scheme quite like this before – in terms of specification, additional features for residents and, also, the commitment to maintaining its mid-century architecture.

“We believe this is going to provide a new benchmark for luxury living in Coventry city centre and we expect demand to be very high from the outset from both owner-occupiers and investors.

“The only way to secure a place at the exclusive preview event is to register interest before Christmas.”

Neil Edginton, managing director of EDG Property, said he had already received great feedback on the project.

He said: “The Co-Operative is really capturing the imagination of the city. People are genuinely interested in what we are doing because it’s a building that the Coventry public are very fond of.

“I recently spoke at the Coventry and Warwickshire Champions breakfast and there was real excitement about the way we are approaching the scheme and how it fits in with the wider city development.

“We wanted to maintain the building that people know and love and make a special place to live and we are now hard at work delivering those plans.

“Knight Frank are experts in the city living market and they echo our thoughts that this will be something unique for the city, offering apartment living that Coventry hasn’t seen before.

“Due to expressed demand, the guest list will be by invitation only, providing exclusively those who have registered early a chance to reserve a boutique home at this unique, city address.”

To secure your VIP invitation email info@edgproperty.co.uk or call 0121 654 9404.

The former Co-Op building in Corporation Street is being transformed into ‘The Co-Operative’, a mix of high-spec apartments, office, retail and leisure in the heart of Coventry.

Work has now started on ‘Hawkins’, the office element of this major mixed-use development.  The new offices have been launched by Coventry based agents, Shortland Penn + Moore, on behalf of award winning developers EDG Property.

Hawkins is a key part of The Co-Operative development and will see the period building transformed into modern open-plan offices in a prime location.

The refurbished first and second floor office space will be served by a stylish, new ground floor reception accessed from Corporation Street and will sit above a new, glass-fronted restaurant/retail outlet.

As part of the Hawkins development, EDG Property will be restoring the period sash windows and professionally restoring the external stone and brickwork feature façade.

The office space is available either as a whole or as separate floors, which are each just under 2,000 sq ft.

Jonathan Moore, a director of SP+M, said: “It’s great to be working with EDG Property on this project, which is very important for Coventry.

“This area of the city is undergoing a major transformation and The Co-Operative is the central, key catalyst for this.

“The offices are going to be refurbished to a very high standard and will be extremely attractive to businesses who are looking to be at the heart of the city centre’s regeneration.”

Plans for EDG Property’s scheme were approved in June to transform the iconic 1950s former Co-Op building into high-specification residential apartments set around a new internal parkland.

The company, which is retaining the mid-century architecture including the existing lettering on The Co-Operative frontage, is investing heavily in the scheme which is set to reshape the city.

The Co-Operative development will also include residents’-only gym areas, a private residents’ park and exclusive members’ lounge with rooftop terrace.

Neil Edginton, managing director of EDG Property said the offices were an important element of the scheme.

He said: “I am very pleased to have Shortland Penn + Moore on board as our office agents and we believe we are bringing ‘cool’ office space to the market. We believe the offices will appeal to both creative and corporate companies wanting to be at the centre of the wonderful redevelopment in Coventry, with first class amenity on the doorstep and excellent transport links.

“The Co-Operative is going to blend 1950s architecture with 21^st Century comfort and style in both the residential space and offices. We have every confidence that, while this is something new for Coventry, it’s going to be very popular.”

Completion on Hawkins is anticipated for November 2017. For more information on the offices contact SP+M on 024 7717 0037.

EDG Property has joined some of the West Midlands top companies to become a ‘champion’ of one of the region’s leading networking organisations.

The Birmingham-based property company has become a member of Coventry and Warwickshire Champions alongside more than 100 organisations including the city’s universities, financial giants Barclays and Jaguar Land Rover.

The networking group was launched in 2012 as an initiative to help raise the profile of Coventry and Warwickshire, spearheaded by Les Ratcliffe, formally head of community relations for Jaguar Land Rover, who was recently awarded an MBE by the Queen.

The group holds regular networking events across the region with speakers from various sectors including business, sport and politics and it recently held its first event in Birmingham, which was attended by more than 300 business and civic leaders to hear an update about Coventry and Warwickshire.

Last month EDG Property was granted planning permission to transform the former Co-Op department store in the heart of Coventry into a landmark £15m residential development and EDG director Neil Edginton said he was delighted to be an advocate for a city with such an exciting future.

He said: “There is a really fantastic buzz around Coventry at the moment and you get a real sense of this when you attend an Champions event. There is huge positivity about the city’s potential and Champions is a great vehicle for people to make those important connections that make things happen.

“The Co-Operative is a major scheme for EDG Property and we are investing in the city in the long term with this project as well as being open to future opportunities because we truly believe that there is still much more to come from Coventry.

“This is our first project in the city and it is great to work with a local authority and other stakeholders with such a ‘can do’ attitude and we are looking forward to becoming part of that and doing what we can to promote the city as it continues on this upward curve and equally importantly as it strives to secure the Capital of Culture 2021 which would be a welcome and deserved accolade for the city.”

Plans have been approved for a new £15 million scheme that will create the highest-spec apartments Coventry city centre has ever seen.

Award winning developer, EDG Property, will now start work on site this summer, to transform the iconic 1950s Co-Op building in Corporation Street into retail, residential and offices after planning permission was granted.

The company revealed plans for the scheme earlier this year which showed it would retain and be true to the mid-century architecture – right down to calling the scheme The Co-Operative and using the existing 1950s lettering on the building frontage.

The firm is investing heavily in the residential scheme which will also include private residents’ gym areas, and with demand expected to be high, potential buyers are being urged to register their interest as soon as possible.

Not only will the apartments be the highest specification units in Coventry to date, the whole development will bring something new to the city including a private internal residents’ park and a private residents’ members lounge.

EDG Property have a proven track record of delivering iconic schemes such as The Cube and The School Yard in Birmingham and managing director Neil Edginton believes the time is right for city centre living in Coventry to move to the next level.

He said: “Now that we have planning permission, we can begin enabling works next month on the whole project.

“The apartments are going to bring something very new and exciting to Coventry city centre and, while they are not officially on sale yet, we will be registering interest. I’ve already spoken to several interested parties who can appreciate what we are going to create at The Co-Operative and that the project will be a real step up for the city centre.

“The architecture is wonderful and we are retaining the historic elements of the external façade – including the traditional Co-Operative lettering – and we will be developing the architecture in keeping with the much loved history.

“Coventry has huge potential.  I was involved in The Mailbox in Birmingham and, at the time, nobody thought that could work, but you look at the city now and it has transformed itself through regenerative projects.

“The time is right for Coventry to do that and we believe this development forms part of a bigger picture for the city.

“We are also very excited about the plans to transform the nearby former Coventry Telegraph building into a 1950s-style hotel and together with other work being undertaken in Corporation Street and Belgrade Plaza, the area is being totally revitalised.”

The new retail, restaurant and café bar space at The Co-Operative will be 22,000 sq ft and the office scheme will be 8,000 sq ft. Commercial agents for both will be announced shortly but those wanting to register their interest in the apartments should contact EDG Property on info@edgproperty.co.uk