Didier Tandy and Stephen McBride have launched property investment and development company Sunny Day Capital to take advantage of opportunities in the UK property market.

The company, which aims to achieve a portfolio upwards of GBP100m within 18 months, will focus particularly on value add opportunities across all sectors.
 
The company will also work alongside long standing joint venture partners including Kevin McCabe’s private Scarborough, particularly in distressed property workouts.
 
The company has already acquired three properties in Central London:
 
• 40 Long Acre, Covent Garden, from Aviva for GBP4.8m. The 12,750 sq ft long leasehold office building is let to Fleishman Hillard on a lease expiring in December 2013. Yield on cost 8.75 per cent on net income of GBP443,346 (at GBP42.50 psf.)
• 19-20 Noel Street, Soho, from an L&G Fund for GBP4.15m. The freehold 8,815 sq ft office building is let to a subsidiary of Omnicom at GBP385,000 pax (GBP43.67 psf) until June 2015, and sublet to MWB Business Exchange. Yield on cost was 8.77 per cent.
• 121 Kennington Park Road, SE1, from a small charity for approximately GBP650,000. The freehold 3,240 sq ft listed office building near the Oval, which was originally constructed as part of an attractive Edwardian residential terrace, is currently vacant.
 
Lambert Smith Hampton represented Sunny Day on Noel Street and Long Acre and Sunny Day acted for itself on the Oval property.
 
Tandy (pictured) left Valad last month, two and a half years after its acquisition of Teesland/Scarborough where he was a shareholder. At Valad, he was head of property: Europe, having joined its predecessor Scarborough in 2000. Prior to Valad, he was director of Hemingway Properties until it was privatised via a sale to Pricoa. Before this, he spent ten years at Guardian Properties.
 
McBride headed up Valad’s capital services business in Europe until June 2009. He became finance director of Scarborough/Teesland Group in 1998, moving over to Valad after Scarborough/Teesland’s sale to Valad in July 2007. His career in property spans 30 years. McBride remains the Valad representative on a number of joint ventures, remains a director of McCabe’s Sheffield United and has recently helped former colleague Mark Hancock establish Talisman Capital. 
 
Tandy says: “The current market presents a large number of compelling buying opportunities and we are pleased to have quickly managed to secure several attractive investments. We are constantly assessing new potential transactions and are confident we will be able to acquire further quality properties, where value can be added, at attractive prices.”
 
The company will be based in Mayfair.