McAlpine JV wins first phase of £300m Selfridges scheme

A joint venture between contractor Sir Robert McAlpine and start-up Blue Sky Building has won the prestigious construction management job to deliver the redevelopment of Selfridges’ flagship department store in London’s Oxford Street.

Building understands that the joint venture has been awarded the first phase of the five-year £300m redevelopment scheme, for which the construction value is thought to be in the region of £75m. The team is believed to be in pole position for later phases, including a second phase with a construction value of more than £100m.

A spokesperson for Selfridges declined to confirm the appointment, but the retailer said this week its £300m investment represented “the biggest investment for a single project by a department store anywhere in the world.”

Start on site for the scheme, designed by architect Gensler, is thought to be imminent, with the store targeting a summer 2016 opening for an extended ground floor shopping area.

The scheme is one of the first major jobs in the UK to be let as construction management since the start of the recovery. Construction management is thought to have been chosen because of the need to prioritise delivery of the project to a demanding timescale.

The scheme will be a boost to Sir Robert McAlpine, which reported a £38m loss in 2013 following problems on a job in the Caribbean. It is the first major construction contract for Blue Sky Building, which was set up in 2011 by Lend Lease’s former head of construction for England and Wales, Julian Daniel.

Start-up consultant Alinea is understood to have won the role of project QS. Alinea was formed a year ago from a grouping of high-profile QSs formerly from Davis Langdon and EC Harris. As previously reported by Building, other consultants on the project include Arup (M&E engineer), Expedition (structural engineer) and WSP (transport planner).

The scheme will create more retail space at Selfridges by knocking together its 1909-built classical-style building and a later extension built behind it. This will involve the reconfiguration of goods entrances and the relocation of the retailer’s office headquarters to an adjacent site, which will be linked by a tunnel.

Blue Sky Building, Sir Robert McAlpine and Alinea were all unavailable to comment when contacted by Building.

W. Galen Weston, group chairman of Selfridges, said: “In the past 10 years Selfridges has grown from strength to strength and this significant investment in the redevelopment of our Oxford Street store is part of our commitment across all our businesses to provide leading luxury shopping experiences for our customers around the world.”