Four shops at the former Legion Cabs site in Surry Hills are on the market

Located at the base of ‘The Foveaux’ mixed-use development, they were developed by Dare Property – which is owned by Sydney fashion figure Danny Avidan – and have a combined area of 1096 square metres.

“The developer has built and sold the 53 apartments above and as such, having underpinned the development with exceptional retailers, they are now exiting the retail to recycle the capital into other projects,” said Matt Pontey, associate director at Colliers International.

The development was completed in 2017 and is located about 300 metres from Sydney’s Central Station. Mr Avidan purchased the site in 2013 for a reported figure of $18 million.

All of the shops are currently occupied, with tenants including Sushi Train, Zeus Street Greek, The Bunker gym and culinary school SBTA. Net rental income for the four tenancies is $659,300.

Mr Pontey said that the listing would likely appeal to  “local high-net-worth individuals, syndicators [and] property funds”.

The combination of being close to a major transport hub and attracting tenants that aligned well with the demographic trends in the area meant that 81 Foveaux Street had managed to avoid the vacancy problems experienced by similar developments in other parts of the city, Mr Pontey said.

“The developer realised that to deliver an exceptional residential product in one of the most discerning markets in Sydney it was crucial for them to underpin it with strong tenants,” he said.

“Foveaux Street is one of the busiest thoroughfares with both vehicular and pedestrian traffic flowing from Flinders Street to Central Station.

“Most of this traffic, in particular the pedestrian traffic, is millennial workers for which the retail at 81 Foveaux Street strongly appeals, with Zeus Street Greek and Sushi Train providing great food offerings [and] The Bunker gym providing a state-of-the-art training facility. In addition to this, The Sydney Business and Travel Academy and The Sydney English Language Academy are incorporated into these four shops [and] provide a constant flow of students and demand for all offerings.”

Although there is little in the way of comparable sales, Mr Pontey said that recent activity at the nearby Central Park development had shown there was demand for retail assets in the area, despite the overall downturn in retail confidence.

“There really hasn’t been anything delivered like this to the market yet,” he said. “However, the recent sale of the nearby retail at Central Park owned by Frasers Property Australia and Japans Sekisui House asset to a consortium comprising Fortius Funds Management and SC Capital Partners Group on behalf of it RECAP V Fund for $174.5 million has solidified the recognition of quality retail assets in the city fringe which are surrounded by billions of dollars in infrastructure,” Mr Pontey said.

The decision to include six secure car spaces and a loading space in the development also boosted its appeal, according to Miron Solomons, National Director, Investment Services at Colliers International.

“This is the first time that we’ve seen brand new prime retail of this calibre offered in Surry Hills. Assets with four quality tenants, strong covenant and full amenities including parking and loading are extremely hard to find in Sydney’s CBD Fringe markets,” he said.

Mr Pontey and Mr Solomons have the listing with Colliers International colleagues Matthew Meynell and Nick Lumley.