Ellandi are delighted to announce the opening of Barclays Eagle Lab at the Marlands Shopping Centre in the heart of Southampton City Centre. This new facility will support creative, digital and knowledge-based entrepreneurs by providing the City’s first collaborative, co-working environment. This is the 24th UK opening of the Barclays Eagle Lab concept and we are delighted to welcome them to The Marlands.

The Marlands is a 200,000 sq ft Community Shopping Centre located in the heart of Southampton City Centre, opposite the City Council’s civic offices and within close proximity to both the city’s two Universities. Implementing an innovative concept like the Barclays Eagle Lab in Southampton to reposition and re-vitalise obsolete retail accommodation in town centres is an important step in regeneration and breathes life into these areas by opening opportunities and actively promoting creativity and entrepreneurship in local communities.

By investing in a new dedicated entrance from Portland Terrace together with new lifts and enlarged windows to create a light and welcoming space, Ellandi has been able to re-purpose what was a vacant second floor area previously occupied by Matalan as storage accommodation and prior to that as part of a Dunnes department store. Southampton City Council have been our partner in the project and have invested £1.50m to support this vibrant environment and foster entrepreneurship in the city.

Eagle Labs also encourage the transformation of businesses, industries and larger organisations through the delivery of structured innovation programming and access to new and emerging technologies.

Now with 24 Eagle Labs located the UK and more in the pipeline, their aim is to provide high-potential businesses with the services they need to develop and grow. From each location they cultivate a community of likeminded entrepreneurs who benefit from access to collaborative co-working and office space, structured mentoring and a curated events programme.

There are over 40,000 students in Southampton. This fabulous facility should help to ensure that after graduation entrepreneurs will have the support and resource, they need to persuade them to stay in Southampton and create new businesses that will benefit the City for many years to come.

Jonathan Robson, Asset Management Director at Ellandi said: “We are delighted to have worked closely in partnership with Southampton City Council and Barclays Eagle Labs to deliver this innovative co-working environment in what is a leading example of re-purposing and re-vitalising obsolete retail accommodation within Community Shopping Centres.”