Our Q4 2025 seminar focuses on the role of leisure in the repurposing and placemaking mix.
The event will take place at SpySCAPE in Covent Garden, where spies are made, not born. The SpySCAPE museum is located in the former home of the London Palladium, so it’s a perfect example of how innovation in leisure can reinvigorate venues and their surrounding locations.
Attendees will be given a wristband to try out the games and challenges after this event.
This seminar takes a look at the role of leisure in the placemaking approach that is already improving the retail environment and innovating the consumer experience, at a time where the sector faces unprecedented challenges and transformation.
We will begin with a presentation from Alberto Esguevillas, CEO UK Retail of the Eurofund Group with examples of repurposed large spaces from the UK and around the world, including the Silverburn project in Glasgow and Ubbo in Lisbon.
This will be followed with case studies showcasing Landsec’s project at St David’s, Cardiff, a look at mixed-use developments in Torbay and Torquay with Stuart Harris of Milligan, and finishing up with a look at Freight Island – Newcastle with Kitty Vaughan of Pradera Lateral.
Our expert panel will demonstrate what can be done with repurposed spaces showing examples of how they have reimagined such space with leisure as an integral element.
Registration from 8.15am
Opening welcome from Roddy Scaife, Head of Product at SPYGAMES Experience.
Presentation & Q&A from 8.45am
Networking from 9.45am to 10.30am
Chair
Julie Fitzsimmins – Director, Lodestar
As an International Strategic Development Consultant, Co-Owner of Lodestar and Playdays, and with 30 years experience, Julie provides strategic direction to clients and supports organisations in turning thought into action. She has worked on many leisure and placemaking projects across Europe, Middle East and USA for clients across Real Estate and Infrastructure, including developers, investors, and retailers. These include Aareal Bank, BNP Paribas, Multi, Deloitte, Titanvolt and leisure partners including Immersive Everywhere, Playpower, Gravity, HAGS and Batfast.
She is Chair of the Revo Educational Trust and a Board Member for Experience UK.
Speakers:
Alberto Esguevillas – CEO UK Retail at Eurofund Group
Alberto has led the launch of Eurofund’s platform in the UK securing the acquisition of its first asset in Silverburn, attracting some of the most respected professionals in the industry and developing key JV relationships.
Before joining Eurofund as the CEO for the UK business, Alberto led Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield’s Italian business, Alberto worked delivering Westfield London’s extension, Westfield Stratford City mixed use projects and headed new business in Europe. Alberto sat in the European Management Team (EMT) for URW and served as a corporate director in a number of URW and JV entities. Prior to joining Westfield in 2014, Alberto led Internos’ Global Investors (now Principal) pan European platform leading the retail teams and the Iberian offices.
Victoria Gould – Senior Leasing Manager at Landsec
Tory is a Senior Leasing Manager at Landsec, in the hospitality team.
Prior to Landsec, Tory was a director at JLL specialising in retail and F&B consultancy and leasing in Shopping centre and transport hubs across Europe.
Landsec are one of the leading real estate companies in the UK with a portfolio worth over £10.9bn spanning over 24m sq ft of well connected retail, leisure, workspace and residential hubs. They own and manage some of the most successful and memorable real estate in the UK and have a large pipeline of mixed use urban development opportunities, including St David’s in Cardiff which occupies one-third of Cardiff’s city centre and half of the city’s retail space. Tory will share a case study on the St David’s, Cardiff project.
Stuart Harris – CEO at Milligan
Stuart is Chief Executive at Milligan, having succeeded John Milligan in 2022. In addition to overseeing the company’s operations, he leads several key regeneration projects.
With nearly 30 years of experience in the design, leasing, marketing, and delivery of retail and leisure developments across the UK and Europe, he has overseen hundreds of deals with occupiers in sectors including retail, F&B, leisure, offices, hotels, and residential. His previous roles include serving as a UK Board Director for Multi Development and co-founding Queensberry, where he contributed to delivering major projects for both public and private sectors over a decade. For the past 15 years, he has focused on town and city centre regeneration and the repurposing of assets.
Additionally, he serves on both the Revo Executive Board and the REVO Repurposing and Regeneration Committee.
Kitty Vaughan – Head of UK Leisure and F&B Leasing at Pradera Lateral
Kitty joined Pradera Lateral in 2023 as a specialist in the F&B and Leisure sector working across their UK portfolio which includes assets such as Trafford Centre, Manchester, Eldon Square, Newcastle and Lakeside, Essex.
Kitty is currently overseeing the leasing of the re-development of 200,000 sq ft of under-utilized space in the heart of Newcastle City Centre. Kitty’s presentations will focus on the 60,000 sq ft former-Debenhams department store which is being re-imagined by Pradera Lateral and Freight Island. Taking inspiration from some of the world’s leading social and entertainment spaces, the venue will bring a mix of cultural and immersive experiences to the city, including everything from kids’ raves, Michelin-star level dining, retractable roof terrace and 2,000 capacity live music and events venue.
Other current leisure projects include repurposing a redundant indoor slope into the worlds longest indoor go-kart track in Glasgow and curating an independent food development in Manchester.
*Please note – our panellists confirm their availability in advance. If any of our panellists cancel due to unforeseen circumstances, we will use our best efforts to replace them, but cannot guarantee that advertised panellists will always be in attendance.