Farringdon 'to be a new shopping Mecca'

Farringdon could follow the City's One New Change with its own signature shopping destination when the £16 billion Crossrail link opens, Derwent London boss John Burns said today.

"We're going to have a million and half more people going to Farringdon. I wouldn't be surprised to see some major retail in there at some stage," he said.

Derwent's pipeline looks set for a Crossrail bounce with its Turnmill and Buckley Building developments in Farringdon, as well as its Central Cross scheme just up the road from Tottenham Court Road's Crossrail station.

In Farringdon, rents are currently sitting at between £30 and £40 per square foot. The advent of Crossrail should send this firmly past the £40 mark, although Burns cautioned: "Projections are for people with cinemas."

Derwent remains "mindful" of the worsening economic backdrop, but has seen none of the drop-off in enquiries which have been reported in recent weeks by major, City-focused developers.

The firm's Angel Building is fully let after nine months and today Derwent secured a 22,000 square foot letting to lastminute.com at its Johnson Building in Hatton Garden.

The company completed 27 lettings during the third quarter, generating £4.8 million in rent.