Mowgli to make North East debut
The Indian restaurant group will be joined at the refurbished former Café Royal site in Newcastle by engineering firm Global Maritime, which has signed for office space on the upper floors.
Owner MCM Group has undertaken a £1.5m revamp of the grade two-listed building at 8 Nelson Street.
The expanding Mowgli brand, which serves Indian street food in the small plates style, has taken 3,798 sq ft on the basement, ground and first floors and will open its doors to diners this summer.
Mowgli now has more than 20 restaurants across the UK, with this being its maiden outing in the region.
Due to expansion, Global Maritime, which specialises in marine and offshore engineering in renewable energy and the energy transition, has secured the third and fourth floors at 8 Nelson Street, comprising slightly more than 3,000 sq ft.
The Norwegian firm has signed a five-year lease and will relocate its 15-strong Newcastle team into the building from The Core at Newcastle Helix this quarter.
MCM is carrying out a bespoke fit-out for Global Maritime’s office space.
Gareth Ellery, director of geosciences, at Global Martime said: “This is a transformative move for our business to a prestigious new city centre address and is a real statement of intent for our employees and clients alike.
“Growth in offshore renewables and the energy transition is very strong, with Newcastle at the epicentre of many key developments in the supply chain. We’re excited to be positioned here, securing a great platform for expansion and a fantastic work environment for our team members.”
Joint agents Knight Frank and Parker Knights are marketing the last remaining space which is on the second floor and comprises 1,732 sq ft.
Nathan Douglas of Knight Frank said: “This is market-leading space in a vibrant, thriving and central location in Newcastle city centre, only a minute’s walk from The Monument and situated opposite the city’s well-loved Grainger Market.
“When we first saw the plans that MCM Group had for renovating the property, we knew that interest would be high and we were right – the landlord has been able to take their pick of tenants, based on those that are the best fit for the building.”
MCM is a privately-owned North East property investment and development company.
Douglas Cranston, investment director at the business, added: “It is fantastic to see our vision for the building now come to fruition. Our strategy was to bring this iconic city centre building back into use with a high-quality refurbishment.
“It is testament to the immense character of the building, the team that has been involved and the standard of the refurbishment, that we are now able to welcome two tenants of such stature to the building.”