LONDON – November 12, 2021 – Ares Management Corporation (“Ares”) (NYSE: ARES) and Generation Partners (“Generation”) today announced that the joint venture between a fund managed by the Ares Real Estate Group and Generation has launched Here! Student Living (“Here!”), a new Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) brand across the U.K.
Here! reflects Ares and Generation’s commitment to delivering exceptional university living experiences for students across some of the U.K.’s most popular university cities. Offering bespoke internal and external amenities, Here! is focused on creating unique and engaging community environments reflective of students’ dynamic needs. These modern living spaces include social study areas, gyms, private dining rooms and fully equipped music rehearsal spaces (Glasgow), among other high-quality amenities.
Alan Artus, Chief Executive of Generation Partners, who has successfully developed other student platforms such as Nido and Pure Student Living said, “The team behind Here! has over 50 years of collective experience delivering a variety of student accommodation concepts and the student PBSA market is still very attractive. We believe we have created a very appealing brand and product with significant opportunity to build a 10,000 bed PBSA portfolio.”
Here! is being rolled out across the joint venture’s three existing sites in Cardiff, Exeter and Glasgow, all of which are fully occupied for the 2021/2022 academic year and are already taking bookings for the next academic year. An additional site is under development in Leeds and is expected to be completed in Summer 2023. Upon completion of the Leeds scheme, Here! expects to have a total of 2,150 beds.
Paul Watson, Director of Operations at Generation said, “When Ares and Generation made the decision to bring a new platform to market, we knew we wanted to create something unique that would represent the needs of the evolving student demographic. That is why we have invested heavily into the experience the amenities available to our students to ensure our buildings stand out in the market.”
Wilson Lamont, Partner and Co-Head of European Real Estate Equity in the Ares Real Estate Group, said, “We are excited to be launching the Here! brand with Generation, building on the momentum gained from our U.K. PBSA portfolio expansion earlier this year. Here! underscores our commitment to providing high-quality, student accommodations as we seek to execute against our residential investment strategy in target markets throughout the UK.”
Generation Partners
Generation Partners has invested and built businesses that strive to provide best-in-class services through innovation, operational excellence and strong leadership since 1995.
