The Range to take 1.2m sq ft facility in East Anglia

The Range CEO Alex Simpkin, said: “This acquisition represents a £200m investment and is integral to our expansion plans. We were naturally attracted to the site due to its commitment to sustainability and proximity to the East coast container port of Felixstowe. The Freeport benefits that Gateway 14 provides allows us to evolve our eCommerce division nationwide and accelerate store growth.”

Gateway 14, wholly owned by Mid Suffolk District Council, has exchanged conditional contracts to develop the distribution unit with its development partner Jaynic, on a freehold turnkey basis.

A reserved matters application is to be submitted in July with a proposed start on site in January 2023 and practical completion in the Autumn of 2023. Gateway 14 already has outline planning consent for a 2.36m sq ft mixed-use innovation, business and warehousing scheme, and construction of the site infra-structure is already well underway.