Confidence in Stockport continues, as partners welcome ONP Group to 2 Stockport Exchange

Stockport Town Centre is undergoing a £1bn transformation, and the council’s ambitious regeneration plans lie at the heart of this. This year will see a record number of projects get underway, putting Stockport Town Centre on the map as one of the prime business locations in Greater Manchester, creating new jobs, skills and growth opportunities.

Leading law firm ONP are one of the many businesses who saw the vision in the council’s plans and wanted to be part of their journey. They were officially welcomed to 2 Stockport Exchange by Stockport Council and Muse Developments to their new home at the North West’s most accessible business location.

The transformation of Stockport Exchange is being delivered in partnership by Stockport Council and national urban regenerators, Muse Developments and forms part of the council’s ambitious Mayoral Development Corporation. This will see thousands of good quality new homes and will create a new and thriving, family friendly town centre community.

The town is proving to be a very attractive proposition and the council continue to work with private sector partners like Muse, which shows real confidence in Stockport and the number of business that have also opened recently is testament to this success. With improvements to Merseyway also underway and the popular Underbanks being recognised nationally as a great place to visit, there’s never been a better time to live, work and play in Stockport.

The leading law firm were keen to stay in the borough and moved from Hazel Grove, taking 22,901 sq ft of space on the 2nd and 3rd floors. They were attracted to Stockport Exchange as it will help to attract and retain the best local talent for their growing team all in a convenient prime town centre location. ONP Group will join global chemical company BASF, who took up home at the development last year.

The striking 61,500 sq ft six-storey building completed last year and sits next to the highly successful 1 Stockport Exchange. The remaining space is also attracting strong interest.

Due to the overwhelming success of the development, Stockport Council and Muse will be bringing forward the next phase of the development shortly, with work on site due to commence in the coming weeks. This will see the delivery of a further 64,000 sq ft of Grade A office space, which has also secured funding from the government’s Getting Building Fund, which will see £54m investment for ‘shovel ready’ projects across Greater Manchester, to support the region’s economic recovery from the Coronavirus pandemic.

Leader of Stockport Council, Cllr Elise Wilson, said:

I am delighted to welcome ONP to their new home in the stunning surroundings of Stockport Exchange, which has been a real game-changer for town centre office space and has set the bar high both in terms of location and quality.

“ONP are joining the town centre at a time of massive change to transform Stockport for the better, with work already started on the Transport Interchange and thousands of new homes in the pipeline, as well as improvements to Merseyway and the Underbanks.

“We continue to attract high-quality businesses to the town centre, and the confidence in Stockport from the private sector has been overwhelming. Our ambitious plans will widen our appeal even more, and we will be announcing more exciting plans for the town centre in the coming weeks. I wish ONP every success for the future.”

Tom Webber, Senior Development Surveyor at Muse Developments, said:

“It’s fantastic to see market confidence in what we’re achieving at Stockport Exchange and I’d like to welcome ONP to the community we’re creating here.

“Stockport is a thriving town with proud people and we’re delighted to be playing a catalytic part in the town’s success through our work with the council. Together, we’re delivering one of the region’s most accessible and connected business hubs that’s not only a providing a stunning place to work, but also providing a solid platform for economic growth while connecting the town to the opportunities available.”

James Argyle, Group CFO at ONP, said:

“We’re really excited to be in our new office space at Stockport Exchange.

“The building is a key enabler for us to reach our growth ambitions, as we continue to recruit experienced conveyancers, candidates for our conveyancing training academy and growth in the wider business. The flexible working space we have created allows us to transform our business through effective collaboration and being so close to transport links means we are really well connected to our other offices in Stoke, and London.”

The wider Stockport Exchange development will deliver up to 375,000 sq ft of office space and 28,000 sq ft of commercial retail and leisure floor space.