The leasehold of Gemini News, Portsmouth, has been sold to Manikkam Amalanathan and Umeshan Kandasamy, supported by commercial finance specialist, Christie Finance.
Gemini News is a profitable, long-established convenience store situated on a busy shopping parade in the mainly residential neighbourhood of North End on Portsea Island.
The convenience store sees extremely high footfall and benefits from a large and loyal customer base. It is a smart-looking, refitted convenience store and also lies under the ‘best-one’ brand.
New owners Amalanathan and Kandasamy bring together 18 years’ experience within the retail industry. Manikkam will predominantly manage the business on a daily basis, whilst Umeshan will provide additional guidance and who expects to spend two to three days a week supporting the business.
They commented, “We are looking forward to making our mark on this locally well-known shop, looking at possibilities of adding a food-to-go section and a Costa Express within the store to attract more customers, and we also have a few other ideas in the pipeline.”
Finance Consultant at Christie Finance, Neil Collins, secured funding for the acquiring pair and said, “Many believe that obtaining funding for leasehold businesses in the convenience retail sector can be difficult, and sometimes impossible, to pursue.
'However, I am pleased to have been able to prove this differently, helping Manikkam and Umeshan to obtain the funding they required. I would like to wish them the very best with the business going forward.”
Tom Glanvill, Associate Director at Christie & Co, arranged the sale and also said, “Gemini News is a long-established convenience store with a great local reputation, and I would like to wish the new owners every success with this venture.
'I have sold 35 retail businesses this year, with this sale forming a part of the figure, and this just goes to show the strong level of interest seen for this type of business.”