Singaporean property buyers and investors snapped up 15 units at The Printworks (pictured) by Galliard Homes last weekend, in associationwith real estate agency JLL, once again proving that London remains a popular destination for overseas property buyers from the city-state.
The development, which consists of a landmark Edwardian building at 139 Clapham Road, SW9, was built in 1903 as a printworks and later the headquarters of the Freemans catalogue company. It is now being converted into 71-loft style apartments, featuring large windows, retained period features, an opulent entrance foyer, lift access, piazza-style rear terracing with landscaping and secure lower ground parking.
For over 50 years the vast headquarters at 139 Clapham Road hosted fashion photo-shoots, visits by aspiring designers, clothing selection meetings and catalogue design reviews.
During the 1960s Freemans used supermodel Twiggy to promote the brand; pop icon Lulu modelled for the Freemans catalogue during the 1970s; supermodel Yasmin Le Bon modelled for Freemans during the 1980s; replaced by Olympic medallist Sharron Davies in the early 1990s.
In 1999 Freemans became part of the German mail order conglomerate Otto Versand Group and was merged with Grattan, another mail order business. Freemans was relocated and integrated with the Bradford based Grattan. As a result, the headquarters at 139 Clapham Road were gradually wound down and finally sold to Galliard Homes.
David Galman, Sales Director at Galliard Homes, said: “This landmark Edwardian building has had such a varied history, produced everything from Marmite, Jam and beer labels to fashion shoots with famous models and glossy magazines. It is one of the last Edwardian warehouse buildings to be redeveloped into trendy loft pads in this part of London. The Printworks offers the very best of the historic and the new, with a grand period façade, behind which are brand new homes.”
The Printworks is on Clapham Road midway between the Oval and Stockwell Underground Stations, which are both within 10 minutes walking distance of the development. Clapham High Street and Clapham Common are just a short distance away
Prices for apartments at the Printworks started from £325,000.
Andrew Batt, International Group Editor of PropertyGuru Group, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories email andrew@propertyguru.com.sg
