There’s a link between a failed UK car park operator and the country’s big supermarket chains — besides the challenge of squeezing a vehicle into some of their spaces. The retailers and NCP, which entered administration last month, have all sold and leased back swaths of their property. Splitting real estate from a company’s actual operations is one of the older forms of balance-sheet engineering, but NCP’s collapse is a cautionary tale on what can go wrong.
UK supermarkets worth some £400mn were put up for sale-and-leaseback deals in the first quarter, according to Savills. That’s roughly half the amount completed in all of last year. Asda and Morrisons, ranked third and fifth by sales in the ultra-competitive UK grocery market, are leading the way. Both were taken private in recent years with owners keen to pay down the resulting debt.
At their best, sale-and-leaseback deals allow a company to raise funds for investment by selling land, while retaining its use through a long-term lease. Why should a retailer manage property when its expertise is selling food? At their worst though, the deals encumber a company with heavy annual rents that limit future financial room for manoeuvre.