One of Liverpool’s famous ‘Three Graces’ has been snapped up for £60m by the food giant behind Crosse & Blackwell. The Royal Liver Building – topped by the city’s famous Liver Birds – often dubbed one of the ‘most recognisable buildings in the north’ was opened in July 1911 as the home of Royal Liver Assurance and is a symbol of the Merseyside city.
In 2011 Royal Liver and its headquarters were taken over by rival Royal London Mutual Insurance Society, which eventually decided to sell the building for the first time in the famous structure’s history. In 2017 Liverpool’s Grade I-listed Royal Liver Building was bought by Luxembourg-based Corestate Capital Holding for £48m, partnered on the deal by Everton FC owner Farhad Moshiri.
Now the 15-storey, 98-metre-high building has been bought in a cut-price deal for £60m – down from its £90m valuation in 2022 – by Princes, the food group behind the likes of Crosse & Blackwell, Olivio and Batchelors.
The building currently serves as the corporate headquarters for Everton FC as well as offices for HSBC, ITV, Grant Thornton and Princes – who have based in the building since 1982 and employs 400 staff there.
Simon Harrison, Chief Executive Officer of Princes, said: “Securing the Royal Liver Building reflects our commitment to this great city, our people, and sustainable success.
“The Royal Liver Building is an enduring symbol of Liverpool, and it’s an honour for Princes to call it our home.”
The £60m deal is part of a broader £83m real estate plan that also includes the Cross Geen facility in Leeds £23m, a company spokeswoman said.
Joe Dent, chief people officer at Princes, added: “With the purchase of the Royal Liver Building, we are investing in the future of our teams in a place that they take great pride in.
“Being headquartered in such an iconic location will continue to inspire our colleagues and cement our deep and meaningful connection to Liverpool.”
The company plans to make the building its corporate headquarters and also use it for events.
Stefan Ziegler, managing director at Hannover Leasing, a subsidiary of Corestate said: “We are pleased to have found in Princes a buyer with both strong financial standing and a deep historical connection to the city of Liverpool and the Royal Liver Building.
“This transaction further underlines our expertise in structuring and executing complex real estate sales in an international context.”
Princes traces its Liverpool roots back to 1880 when Simpson & Roberts & Co was established as an importer of canned food.
In 1900 the business adopted the name Princes and the brand has been unchanged ever since.
The Royal Liver Building is one of the city’s renowned Three Graces, along with the neighbouring Cunard and Port of Liverpool buildings.
It has been a backdrop for many TV and film productions and was used as building in Gotham City in the superhero blockbuster The Batman.
The film’s production designer James Chinlund said the building “offered this amazing perch” for Batman’s jump and an aerial shot, captured using a helicopter, was then heavily altered to turn Liverpool’s waterfront into the Gotham cityscape.
In June 2020, firefighters had to bring a blaze in the building under control after a firework was thrown at it while fans celebrated Liverpool winning the Premier League.