What Highcross Leicester does

Highcross Leicester is a regional shopping centre located in central Leicester, United Kingdom, currently managed by Savills following a 2025 management transition. The centre houses over 70 retail, food & beverage, and entertainment tenants across categories including fashion (Mango, Zara, John Lewis), health and beauty (Space NK, Superdrug, Nomination, PURESEOUL), jewellery, technology, homeware, and leisure (Showcase Cinema de Lux, Treetop Golf, The Gym Group, Social Climbing). It is positioned as Leicester's primary shopping destination, drawing 15.8 million visitors annually.

The centre is undergoing a £30 million transformation programme launched in February 2025 under Savills management, with new store openings (Castore, Butterwick Bakery, Sunglass Hut, PURESEOUL, and the returning Office footwear brand) and refurbished facilities. Operational technology is limited to standard shopping-centre infrastructure: an ANPR-based all-day parking subscription system (£5/day), centre-wide free WiFi, a Quiet Hour accessibility programme, and marketing channels spanning Instagram, email newsletter, blog content and community events programming such as Carnival Summer. There is no proprietary technology platform beyond these conventional retail real-estate systems.

Revenue is generated principally through retail tenant rentals (recurring leases), supplemented by parking fees (subscription and hourly) and gift card sales (redeemable at 70+ outlets). The primary customer base is the general consumer shopper in the Leicester/East Midlands catchment, while the centre's paying customers are its 70+ retail and leisure tenants. The centre employs between 101 and 250 staff and is privately held under Savills management, with no disclosed revenue, no parent-company ownership structure beyond Savills as property manager, and no AI/ML capabilities disclosed.

Name

Highcross Leicester

Legal name

Highcross Leicester

Website

https://highcrossleicester.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Highcross Leicester is a managed regional shopping centre in central Leicester, UK, housing 70+ retail, dining, and entertainment tenants across 15.8 million annual visitors, operating under Savills management with a £30 million transformation programme underway.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Leicester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Retail Tenant Rentals: Income from retail tenants occupying space in the shopping centre
2. Car Parking Fees: Revenue from parking services including £5 all-day subscription parking, hourly rates for non-subscribers
3. Gift Card Sales: Sale of gift cards redeemable at over 70 stores, restaurants and entertainment venues across the centre

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Highcross Leicester operates a city-centre shopping centre in Leicester, UK, aggregating over 70 retail, dining, and entertainment tenants under one roof. The centre generates revenue through tenant rentals and offers consumer-facing services including all-day parking subscriptions, a multi-store gift card programme, free centre-wide WiFi, accessibility services such as Quiet Hour, and seasonal event programming including Carnival Summer.

Product overview

Highcross Leicester is a shopping centre offering a unified retail and leisure destination combining fashion, beauty, technology, home goods, food and beverage, and entertainment. The centre's product portfolio spans retail store categories (fashion, footwear, jewellery, technology, health & beauty, toys, home & living), food & drink venues (restaurants, cafes, takeaways), and entertainment services (12-screen cinema, indoor mini golf, bouldering gym, 24/7 fitness). Supporting services include all-day parking subscriptions, a gift card programme accepted at 70+ outlets, free centre-wide WiFi, and accessibility features such as weekly Quiet Hour sessions. The centre also runs seasonal event programming including the Carnival Summer celebration and community charity partnerships. New store openings for PURESEOUL and Office are expanding the beauty and footwear offerings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Highcross Gift Card Gift card redeemable at over 70 stores, restaurants and entertainment venues including Zara, Apple, JD Sports, Wagamama, Treetop Golf, Pandora and Mango. Targeted at consumers shopping for gifts for friends, family and colleagues.
• All-Day Parking Subscription Parking subscription service offering all-day parking for £5, with ANPR automatic entry/exit system at rooftop and John Lewis car parks. Standard hourly rates also available for non-subscribers. Targeted at shopping centre visitors.
• Quiet Hour Weekly quiet shopping hour every Saturday 9am-10am creating a calmer, low-sensory shopping environment for visitors who find large public spaces difficult. Targeted at neurodiverse visitors, families with sensory-sensitive members, and accessibility-conscious shoppers.
• Free WiFi Complimentary guest WiFi available throughout the centre for visitors to stay connected during their visit. Targeted at all shopping centre visitors.
• Carnival Summer Month-long programme of Caribbean heritage celebrations featuring exhibitions, costume workshops, live music, Soca fitness sessions and Sound System Nights leading up to Leicester Caribbean Carnival. Targeted at Leicester residents and visitors interested in cultural community events.
• Charity of the Year Partnership Annual charity partnership programme with LOROS Hospice for 2026, supporting free compassionate care for terminally ill adult patients, families and carers across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. Targeted at visitors interested in community impact.

Quantifiable outcome

• 15.8 million visitors annually
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• PURESEOULminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 10 April 2026PURESEOUL is opening its first East Midlands store at Highcross Leicester on the lower mall in early May, strengthening the centre's beauty offering
• OfficeminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 10 April 2026Office is returning to Highcross Leicester with a store on the upper mall opening mid-April, strengthening the centre's footwear offering
• LOROS HospicecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026LOROS Hospice has been selected as Highcross Leicester's Charity of the Year for 2026. LOROS provides free compassionate care and support to terminally ill adult patients, families and carers across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, helping more than 2,500 people each year since 1985.
• SavillscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 February 2025Savills took on new management of Highcross Leicester and is overseeing the £30 million transformation programme. Savills is a global real estate advisor providing property management services for the centre.
• CastoreminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNew brand joining Highcross as part of the transformation programme - Castore is a premium sportswear retailer
• Butterwick BakeryminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNew bakery brand joining Highcross as part of the £30 million transformation programme
• Sunglass HutminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEyewear retailer joining Highcross as part of the new brand additions under Savills management

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Savills (Plc): Global real estate advisor currently managing Highcross Leicester. Not a direct shopping-centre operator/peer, but the parent management entity whose performance and UK retail property strategy directly influences Highcross Leicester's trajectory.

Direct peers

• Meadowhall: Large UK regional shopping centre in Sheffield with a comparable tenant mix spanning fashion anchors, dining, cinema, and leisure. Operates at similar visitor scale and faces the same structural UK retail dynamics as Highcross Leicester.
• Cabot Circus: Bristol city-centre shopping destination combining retail, dining and entertainment (cinema, leisure). Comparable mixed-use UK regional asset to Highcross Leicester in scale and offer.
• Victoria Leeds: Leeds city-centre shopping centre with John Lewis anchor and mixed retail/dining/entertainment offer. Direct comparability to Highcross Leicester given overlapping anchor tenants (John Lewis) and similar city-centre destination positioning.
• Bluewater: Large UK regional shopping centre in Kent combining retail, dining and leisure attractions (including cinema and indoor climbing). Comparable destination-format operating model to Highcross Leicester.
• Trafford Centre: Major UK regional shopping destination in Manchester combining premium retail, dining and entertainment (cinema, mini golf, sea-life attractions). Directly comparable in offering breadth and destination positioning to Highcross Leicester.
• Bullring & Grand Central: Major Birmingham city-centre shopping centre with Selfridges anchor and comparable retail/dining/entertainment mix. Comparable regional UK destination asset with similar footfall dynamics and tenant base.
• Liverpool ONE: Open-air regional retail and leisure destination in Liverpool city centre with comparable blend of fashion anchors, dining, cinema and experiential leisure. Operates on similar destination retail model in a UK regional city.

Regional players

• Fosse Park: Adjacent out-of-town retail park serving the Leicester catchment. A direct competitive threat to Highcross Leicester for non-experiential shopping trips, especially for fashion and home categories.

Broad incumbents

• Westfield (UK): Dominant UK shopping-centre operator (Stratford and Shepherd's Bush) with broader portfolio and significantly larger scale than Highcross Leicester. Sets the upper benchmark for UK regional centre operating standards but is materially larger and more diversified.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/highcross
• Xx.com/Highcross
• Facebookfacebook.com/highcross

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Highcross Leicester