ILKLEY-based property consultancy DE Commercial has brokered a deal in the town allowing a local firm to expand further.

DE Commercial advised private clients on the letting of 9-11 South Hawksworth Street to Wilkinson and Partners Chartered Accountants, who were seeking larger premises within the town to meet their expansion strategy.

Wilkinson and Partners, who have offices in Bingley and Ilkley, already occupied the upper floors of the property. Following a comprehensive refurbishment they have now moved into the ground floor, which was previously occupied by Townstyle Barbers.

Richard Heslop, the managing director of DE Commercial, said: “This was an excellent deal, very suitable for both parties. Wilkinson and Partners were looking for extra office space and the closure of Townstyle Barbers gave them the perfect opportunity to expand within the building they already occupied. This deal has also given us the chance to update and extend the lease to 10 years on the 1,650 sq ft building, providing a strong covenant for the owner and enhancing the investment value of the building. In addition, it underlines the fact that Ilkley remains an attractive location for professional services firms.”

Steven Wilkinson, partner with Wilkinson and Partners, added: “The partners of W&P are grateful for Richard Heslop’s professional assistance with the new lease agreement.”

This deal comes shortly after three significant retail and investment deals in Ilkley, also brokered by DE Commercial.

Mr Heslop founded DE Commercial when the residential arm of property consultancy Dale Eddison, where he was a commercial property partner, was bought by Linley & Simpson.

He has more than 25 years’ experience of the commercial property market, advising such diverse clients as Weidmann, Habasit UK, Sinclairs, Pendle Developments, Produmax and Russells Construction.

“In these circumstances, it made perfect sense to launch DE Commercial as a stand-alone commercial property agency. This has proved to be a wonderful opportunity for us to consolidate and enhance our position as one of West Yorkshire’s premier independent commercial property consultancies. Our primary focus is on Airedale and Wharfedale, but we are working on successful developments across the north of England.”

The move has been very successful and DE Commercial has now moved into larger, state-of-the-art offices in Hawksworth Street in Ilkley. “We have just completed a year as DE Commercial and the deals we have transacted have enabled us to expand into new offices. We are now looking forward to a successful 2020, especially as the political gridlock nationally has now been broken,” he added.