The owners of Leicester’s newest aparthotel have secured £13.8 million funding.
Aimrok Holdings, which owns The Gresham – a recently opened short-stay apartment complex in the city’s former Fenwick building – has received the support from Cynergy Bank.
It will allow Aimrok to refinance its existing facilities now that the building is open for business.
The developer spent two years creating the aparthotel in the Grade II-listed building on the corner of Market Street and Belvoir Street.
It has 121 short-stay, serviced apartments, each with kitchen and en-suite facilities, as well as a fitness suite and laundry room.
There is also a restaurant and bar called ‘Black Iron Social' – open to guests and the general public – which is run by the same team behind Leicester’s Winstanley House Hotel and the City Rooms.
There are four shop units within the scheme and ‘Gresham Works’ – 12,000 square feet of conference facilities and co-working spaces, that have been leased to Leicester City Council on a 25-year agreement.
The redevelopment was part-funded by an £8.2 million loan from Maslow Capital and a £4 million Growing Places Fund (GPF) loan through the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership (LLEP).
Mark Copson, a partner in Aimrok Holdings and co-owner of The Gresham, said Cynergy Bank had been the right fit for the business.
He said: “The team applied innovative and strategic thinking to find the right solution to meet our requirements.
“We look forward to building on this relationship and working with the team in the future.
Sat Shingadia, relationship director at Cynergy Bank, said “It has been a pleasure working with Aimrok holdings, to complete the bank’s first hotel turnkey commercial transaction.
“Aimrok Holdings is a prosperous business and is run by an impressive management team and will no doubt grow from strength to strength.”
The building was designed by Leicester architect Isaac Barradale in the 1800s. It originally comprised of eight separate buildings and was home to Joseph Johnson’s department store until 1962 when it was purchased by Fenwick.
Three of the original units were awarded Grade II listed status in October 2017 and the new hotel opened last November.
Cynergy Bank was established in 2018 by entrepreneurs to serve the needs of business owners, property entrepreneurs and family businesses.
