A rare opportunity to buy a Grade Two-listed Victorian shopping arcade in Bristol has arisen with city-based property agency Hartnell Taylor Cook acting on the sale.
Clifton Arcade, pictured, in the heart of Clifton village, has been put up for sale by its owners, Bristol-based property investment firm Moorpoint. 
The firm has invested heavily in the historic arcade, including restoring and re-opening original sections, and its two cafés fronting onto pedestrianised Boyce’s Avenue along with its 16 speciality independent retail unit at ground floor level are fully let.
The build also hosts a vibrant mix of office occupiers working from boutique spaces on the first and second floors, including Moorpoint itself.
Hartnell Taylor Cook is marketing the property with a guide price of £4.5m. It produces a gross annual rental income of more than £320,000.
The arcade was designed and built by self-taught architect and entrepreneur Joseph King and opened in 1879. Then called Kings Clifton Bazaar and Winter Garden, it was apparently an instant flop – becoming known as King’s Folly. Within months it was struggling, its owners went bankrupt and by July of the same year it was already up for sale.
But with rise in popularity of artisan shops and craft boutiques, Victorian arcades are now much sought after as they offer a glimpse of retail before the age of identikit shopping malls and global brands.
Hartnell Taylor Cook head of retail agency Richard Saunders said: “Opportunities to invest in such a unique asset in the heart of Clifton village are rare indeed.
“Clifton’s appeal endures. It is somewhere that national brands want to be, and it is somewhere that independent brands thrive, with those two elements feeding off each other to create a buoyant mix.”
He said recent planning consent to demolish the nearby boarded-up buildings fronting onto Clifton Down Road and replacement them with a retail-led scheme would add value to the arcade and its surroundings as well as improving the public realm and landscaping.
“We expect the Clifton Arcade to appeal to investors with an eye for unique heritage assets that are still hugely relevant in the modern economy,” he said.
