Suffolk is one of the most prosperous counties in the UK attracting large scale investment from a wide range of businesses, backed by a strong enterprise culture and incentives for growth.

Ipswich is the fastest growing centre in the East of England and is home to a new wave of regeneration schemes that are pivotal in helping drive forward its economy. Among these, Futura Park is set to become one of East Anglia’s most important retail and business parks. This is the first major commercial site to be delivered since the downturn of 2008 and is one of the few schemes that can accommodate larger scale occupiers of 100,000 sq ft upwards in the A14 corridor.

Paul Isaacs of AquiGen, the developer behind Futura Park, said: “There is a sense that Ipswich is a town in the ascendancy as it raises its game and attracts business and trade from across the region. With positive signs that the commercial property market is well and truly on the move again, we expect there to be strong interest in the commercial space at Futura Park this year.”

Futura Park launched more than a year ago with the opening of its flagship John Lewis at home and Waitrose stores and is now established as one of Ipswich’s most popular retail destinations in terms of footfall, attracting shoppers from across East Anglia. As the first business at Futura Park, the John Lewis Partnership had set the scene for a bright future. It is well known that the ‘Waitrose effect’ lends a boost to local businesses and communities within the areas it operates; the stores were an instant success and already employ several hundred people. More recently, trading at Futura Park was further boosted by the launch of the second retail phase including Furniture Village and DFS, which opened last summer.

Kick-starting the regeneration of the site with the delivery of a successful retail offering has been just the first step in creating a major new commercial hub, which when complete is expected to create up to 1,500 new jobs.

Conveniently located to the South East of Ipswich and right next to the A14, the site was identified as an important strategic employment location, as part of the council’s vision to promote sustainable economic growth in the wider Ipswich area. Now the remaining 25 acres are available to provide occupiers with bespoke business and office space; and developers AquiGen and their agents are working to attract end users. Discussions are already under way with a number of substantial local businesses in both the manufacturing and distribution sectors seeking to take advantage of the many benefits of the scheme.

Paul Isaacs continued: “Whereas other business parks in Ipswich have played a vital role in helping underpin the expansion of the local economy, Futura Park is offering a rare opportunity to bring forward the next generation in business space with opportunities for businesses to take a blank canvas and shape their own future. We are committed to delivering a modern and high quality commercial scheme for occupiers requiring state of the art premises in a location well served by local infrastructure.”

Futura Park is on a 44-acre former industrial site between Ransomes Way and Nacton Road.