The real estate investment and development company has purchased the 22,000 sq ft former Victorian cotton mill, which is currently being used as a business centre comprising budget offices, showrooms, storage units and a café.

The group plans to invest more than £250,000 in restoring the building’s period features and transforming the property into high-specification, flexible, co-working spaces that will appeal to the city’s increasing number of start-ups, SMEs and freelancers.

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Following renovation work, HS Property Group will occupy a section of the top floor of the five-storey building – which will become its new headquarters – while the remainder of the building will be available to rent with spaces ranging from 100-4,000 sq ft.

“Our acquisition of the Progress Centre lays down our roots near to Manchester city centre, enabling us to give back and promote [the] growth of Manchester’s vibrant start-up community,” said Guy Horne, director and co-founder of HS Property Group (pictured above, right).

“The Progress Centre is on the doorstep of one of Manchester’s most exciting developments, which will bridge the gap between Piccadilly and Ardwick.

“Our focus and responsibility [are] now to realise the potential of the building and its facilities to provide high-quality, future-proof, creative workspaces for the city’s innovative businesses to collaborate.”

Also pictured above: David Searle, co-founder of HS Property Group