Earls Court & Olympia Announces Purchase of The Brewery, Chiswell Street

Internationally renowned event venues company Earls Court & Olympia Group, has announced the purchase, from Whitbread, of The Brewery, Chiswell Street and associated properties for £55 million.

The Brewery, Chiswell Street is a unique and prestigious conference and banqueting venue within the heart of the city of London and will be managed as part of Earls Court & Olympia’s portfolio of exhibition, conference and banqueting venues. This acquisition will complement the existing facilities at Olympia and Earls Court.

The Brewery is steeped in heritage and has nine meeting rooms which can cater for events from nine to 900 people. All the rooms reflect the historical nature of the building, which was built in 1782 and boasts many outstanding features including the vaulted timber roof in the Porter Tun room which is one of London's largest unobstructed rooms and the Georgian elegance of the Queen Charlotte room supported by a team who excel in service and attention to detail.

St James Capital will own and manage the associated property portfolio around Chiswell Street and will be looking to enhance the surrounding buildings over the next few years to compliment the conference venue which will, itself, benefit from investment on facilities and infrastructure under the ownership of Earls Court & Olympia.

Anthony Lyons, CEO, Earls Court & Olympia Ltd, commented “We have committed to growing and strengthening our venue portfolio and developing our existing business. This move is part of our wider strategy to focus on acquisitions which we believe have a significant role to play in the future direction and growth of Earls Court & Olympia. The Brewery at Chiswell Street aligns with this, providing more conference and banqueting facilities in a central London location for our customers. This acquisition will allow us to strengthen and build our business as the leading conference and exhibition venues in central London.”

For the year ending February 2005, The Brewery reported turnover of £8.7 million and currently employs up to 100 people, who will transfer to the Earls Court & Olympia group.

Simon Conway Chief Operating Officer of Earls Court & Olympia and St James Capital worked closely with specialists, Derrick Beare & Daniel Austin from the property finance team at Investec Bank to create a unique structured finance solution for St James Capital tailored for this acquisition.

Lawyers, Mishcon de Reya assisted by Larry Nathan (corporate) and Daniel Lipman (property) in conjunction with accountants and financial advisors at BDO Stoy Hayward whose team were lead by corporate finance partner Mark Bomer, acted for St James Capital and Earls Court & Olympia. The purchasers were advised by specialist property and leisure agents Davis Coffer Lyons.

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Notes to Editors

Earls Court and Olympia Ltd is the UK’s premier exhibition and conference venue and organising company and business Superbrand. Earls Court & Olympia Ltd is owned by property specialists St James Capital, having been acquired by Lyons, Conway and Coffer in May 2004 from Candover Investments.

St James Capital is the leading property and leisure based business, which has built a focused group of companies over the past seven years. The company is run by Anthony Lyons, Chief Executive Officer, Simon Conway, Chief Operating Officer and David Coffer, Chairman.

The business comprises two of the UK’s busiest exhibition, concert and special events venues: London’s famous Earls Court and Olympia. Over 170 shows are held in the two venues each year, attracting over 3.8 million visitors and 25,000 exhibiting companies.

For further information on EC&O: Rebecca Salt Director of Communications Earls Court & Olympia Ltd Tel: 020 7 370 8037/ 07774 679739 Email: Rebecca.salt@eco.co.uk

For further information on St James Capital: Simon Conway Chief Operating Officer St James Capital Ltd Tel: 020 7 370 8450 Email: simon.conway@eco.co.uk

For further information on Davis Coffer Lyons: Kate Taylor Davis Coffer Lyons Tel: 020 7 299 0752 Email: ktaylor@daviscofferlyons.co.uk

For further information on Mishcon de Reya: Susan Freeman Partner Mischon de Reya Tel: 020 7 440 7017 Email: susan.freeman@mishcon.co.uk

For further information on BDO Stoy Hayward: Mark Bomer BDO Stoy Hayward LLP Tel: 020 7 893 3117 Email: mark.bomer@bdo.co.uk

For further information on Investec Bank : Derrick Beare Investec Bank (UK) Limited Gresham Street London EC2V 7QP Tel: 020 7 597 4107 Email: dbeare@investec.co.uk