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Sam Ridgway - 3rd February 2020

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Global sportswear brand PUMA to open new UK HQ in £87m Manchester development

Emily Sergeant No.3 Circle Square CGI

No.3 Circle Square CGI

PUMA is set to open its new UK headquarters right here in Manchester.

It has been announced that the global sportswear brand has agreed a 20,000 sq ft lease of cutting-edge workspace in what is turning out to be one of the city’s most exciting destinations for technology, digital innovation, and creative businesses, Circle Square.

Set to take shape on the Oxford Road Corridor, PUMA’s new HQ will be in the £87 million development being brought forward by Bruntwood SciTech – which is a joint venture between property developers Bruntwood, L&G (Legal & General), and Greater Manchester Pension Fund.

No.3 Circle Square, which is where PUMA will be calling home, forms the latest phase of the neighbourhood’s ‘masterplan’, offering 15 floors of new workspace focused on innovation businesses.

According to developers, the building is currently finalising construction and will open this summer.

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A post shared by Bruntwood SciTech (@bruntwoodscitech)

PUMA may already have an existing small presence in Manchester, but this move sees the brand relocate its UK HQ from London to Manchester.

The new Manchester HQ will be home to the company’s sales, marketing, merchandising, finance, people and operations, and direct to consumer departments.

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PUMA says its new Manchester base will allow it to work side-by-side with existing forward-thinking and disruptive businesses and institutions that are already located at the Circle Square campus, and in the wider city centre, and provide it with new opportunities to collaborate and innovate as it continues to focus on innovation and advancing performance.

The location will also put PUMA on the doorstep of the city’s world-leading academic institutions too, giving it access to Manchester’s top STEM and creative talent in the city.

“The move to Circle Square and state-of-the-art facilities on offer forms a key part of our strategy for providing PUMA’s employees with a first class working environment with top facilities and amenities,” commented Lucynda Davies, who is PUMA’s UK Managing Director, as the new UK HQ was announced this week.

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“Being surrounded by such a strong line up of industry was an important factor, and to find somewhere in the heart of Manchester’s thriving tech community is exactly what we hoped for.

“We’ve already experienced many of the gains that a thriving city like Manchester affords… and now, through our new UK HQ, we look forward to further integrating ourselves in the city’s innovative community.”

Featured Image – Bruntwood SciTech

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Music venue charity issues ‘shocked’ statement ahead of impending Manchester closure

A nationwide music charity has issued a statement after discovering the news of another impending Manchester venue loss, as student-favourite Retro Bar looks to be closing.

Reputable UK non-profit, Music Venue Trust, has come out to express their shock at the plans to shut the long-standing and well-established nightlife and music venue.

Adjacent to the University of Manchester campus, Retro Bar has catered to students and locals alike for more than 35 years. The nightclub, bar and live performance space is set to be displaced in a new venture between Bruntwood SciTech and the university.

In a statement posted on social media, Music Venue Trust wrote: “It’s just not good enough to dismiss the extraordinary value these organisations bring to their communities, the cultural ecosystem and the night time economy.”

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A post shared by Music Venue Trust (@musicvenuetrust)

The Music Venue Trust (MVT) was formed just over a decade ago to protect and improve independent and grassroots music venues across the UK, so they were quick to step in upon learning that Manchester’s beloved Retro Bar faces closing.

The organisation works closely with larger venues and grassroots music venues to help support the infrastructure of the music industry and live music as a whole.

They even partnered with Katy Perry, who is heading out on tour and visiting AO Arena later this year, with £1 from every ticket sold going to this charity to be distributed to independent music venues.

MVT went on to explain that “Retro has not factored into the Sister masterplan in any meaningful way and faces the very real prospect of permanent closure this July”.

The impending closure of Retro makes way for a £1.7 billion joint development, which is being labelled as the ‘Sister Masterplan‘, between the uni and the Greater Manchester property development group.

Retro hosts in excess of 200 live gigs per year and welcomes upwards of 20,000 customers annually, having served as a staple venue in Mancunian nightlife culture.

In response to the plans, the MVT is currently leading a crowdfunding attempt to save the space and has even received the backing of a very familiar face.

On the fundraising site, anyone thinking of donating will find a video from the one and only Frank Turner – a passionate grassroots advocate – who is fully behind the campaign.

It was only this past April that he gave a passionate speech on the power of these venues and in this minute-long clip, he reveals, “It’s the place where I played my first solo show in Manchester back in 2005”, and its fair to say that without it he may never had made it to headlining a sold out Academy 1.

He goes on to say as much, adding: “I owe my career to places like Retro Bar […] without independent grassroots music venues we can’t get anywhere”.

If you want to donate or support this campaign further, you can view Music Venue Trust and Retro Bar’s joint crowdfunding campaign HERE.

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Featured Images — Unsplash / Flickr /Crowdfunder