Land Securities and TrueStart forge strategic partnership
to invest in the future of retail
London XXX, 2014: TrueStart, the retail and consumer innovation hub backed by sector specialist investor True
Capital, and Land Securities, the UK’s largest commercial property company, have formed a strategic
partnership to support innovation in the retail and consumer sectors.
TrueStart is the only independent retail and consumer sector specialist investment hub in Europe, and is
specifically designed to support innovation by bringing together the brightest young minds and start-ups under
one roof.
The partnership will give Land Securities and its clients exposure to the most cutting-edge products and
technology developments in the retail and consumer world. TrueStart entrepreneurs will, in turn, have access
to Land Securities’ highly skilled people across a number of different disciplines, who will share their expertise,
offer mentoring and help the young entrepreneurs accelerate their start-ups’ growth. Land Securities will also
offer TrueStart access to its portfolio of premium retail locations across the UK.
The TrueStart hub will sit in the heart of Victoria, London’s most up-and-coming creative and retail destination,
which is currently undergoing a £2 billion transformation by Land Securities.
TrueStart will house up to 20 new businesses a year in the newly renovated Francis House, SW1, and allow
entrepreneurs to rub shoulders with high-profile retailers, successful entrepreneurs and creatives, providing
the perfect environment to develop and test the most innovative retail ideas.
Ashley Blake, Director of Retail Portfolio Management at Land Securities, said: “We are delighted to partner
with TrueStart and welcome the hub to Victoria. This partnership means we can help today’s entrepreneurs
recognise their potential and succeed as the retailers of tomorrow. It gives us first-hand access to the sectorleading innovation and fresh ideas which will shape the retail landscape of the future, allowing us to continue
delivering the best retail to consumers in Victoria and beyond. It’s also a fantastic opportunity for some of our
key people to work with new entrepreneurs and to get first-hand experience of a start-up environment, which
will be benefit our future business and their own personal development..”
Matt Truman, Co-Founder of TrueStart and True Capital, said: “We are delighted that Land Securities, the UK’s
market leading retail property investor and a key industry stakeholder, has chosen to be TrueStart’s first
strategic partner. We are excited about the opportunities the partnership will bring both for TrueStart and,
most importantly, for our resident entrepreneurs. The support of a major blue chip company for the launch of
what will be the leading retail and consumer sector specialist innovation hub in Europe is a key milestone in
achieving our wider vision to become the first contact for any stakeholder within the retail sector.”
-EndsNotes to the editors:
TrueStart TrueStart is a central London based investment hub specifically designed to support innovation in
the retail and consumer sectors, bringing together the brightest young minds and startups under one roof in
order to create the products and solutions that will transform the future of these industries. TrueStart is part
of True Capital, a specialist alternative asset manager, focusing solely on the retail and consumer sector. The
business is overseen by True Capital’s senior management team and run operationally by experienced
entrepreneurs who have founded, built and sold businesses over a period of many years.
Land Securities is the UK’s largest commercial property company and a member of the FTSE 100. The company
owns and manages more than 26 million sq ft of office, retail and residential space. Land Securities’ London
portfolio includes landmark properties such as One New Change, which has re-established vibrant shopping in
the Square Mile. It is jointly developing 20 Fenchurch Street, the City’s newest and most exciting skyscraper.
Land Securities currently has a 2.2 million sq ft development pipeline for Victoria and plans to invest £2 billion
over the next decade. The area around Victoria Street will be transformed into a place for Londoners to enjoy,
people to visit and a place that businesses and individuals are proud to call home.