CBRE Investment Management and Portus Retail Closes Largest European Single-Asset Retail Park Transaction in Two Years

CBRE Investment Management, on behalf of the European Co-Investment Fund (ECF), has sold BIG Shopping Park in Copenhagen, owned in a Joint Venture with Portus Retail Partners to M&G Real Estate – part of M&G plc’s £65 billion private assets and alternatives business. The sale represents one of the largest European single-asset retail transactions and the for the Nordics region, it is the second largest single asset retail transaction to have closed since the beginning of the pandemic.

Opened in 2015, the c. 40,700 sq m shopping park is a unique asset in the Copenhagen retail market with it being a hybrid between a retail park and shopping centre. With 24 tenants and fully occupied, the shopping park is anchored by two supermarkets and two large electronic stores. BIG presents a diverse tenant mix also offering fashion, furniture/DIY stores, restaurants, cafes, a cinema, gym and indoor playground. The big-box scheme has remained opened throughout the pandemic, leading to a continued high volume of visitors despite restrictions.

“As a convenience shopping destination, BIG has proven to be resilient against the transitioning retail landscape. Even with the increase in online shopping and Covid, BIG has increased occupancy over the past few years,” commented Mark Kouters, Fund Manager for ECF, CBRE Investment Management. “We have completed our business plan for this asset, which was to improve the tenant mix, unlock reversion on ground floor units and increase occupancy levels. With a backdrop of strong investor appetite for Nordics retail, it is an appropriate time to exit, and we are very pleased to have achieved a positive sale for our investors.”

Simon Ellis, Fund manager at M&G, says: “Retail parks have shown their resilience during the pandemic, faring particularly well against online shopping and playing a key role in fulfilling online orders. This deal reflects the attractive opportunities we are seeing to acquire high quality assets with solid performance track records at a healthy yield premium relative to other sectors. We will continue to allocate selectively as we look to provide consistent returns for our investors.”

Robert Göthe, Director, Asset & Investment for M&G in the Nordics, adds: “BIG is particularly well located with excellent transport links and is an important social hub for the local community. The pipeline for this type of unique retail warehouse offering in Copenhagen, which provides a wide cross section of retailers and experiential shopping is very limited. The shifting consumer focus to bulky goods, food and DIY items, which remain immune to online shopping patterns, will also ensure the resilience of retail park rents as the economy and retail sales stabilise.”

Portus Retail acted as operating partner to CBRE Investment Management and worked with Capital Investment as local manager. CBRE and Accura advised on the sale. M&G were advised by Bruun & Hjejle, Deloitte, WSP and Colliers.

About CBRE Investment Management

CBRE Investment Management is a leading global real assets investment management firm with $133.1 billion in assets under management* as of September 30, 2021, operating in more than 30 offices and 20 countries around the world. Through its investor-operator culture, the firm seeks to deliver sustainable investment solutions across real assets categories, geographies, risk profiles and execution formats so that its clients, people and communities thrive.

CBRE Investment Management is an independently operated affiliate of CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBRE), the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm (based on 2020 revenue). CBRE has more than 100,000 employees serving clients in more than 100 countries. CBRE Investment Management harnesses CBRE’s data and market insights, investment sourcing and other resources for the benefit of its clients. For more information, please visit www.cbreim.com.

*Assets under management (AUM) refers to the assets under management, fair market value of real assets-related investments with respect to which CBRE Investment Management provides, on a global basis, oversight, investment management services and other advice and which generally consist of investments in real assets; equity in funds and joint ventures; securities portfolios; operating companies and real assets-related loans. This AUM is intended principally to reflect the extent of CBRE Investment Management’s presence in the global real assets market, and its calculation of AUM may differ from the calculations of other asset managers and from its calculation of regulatory assets under management for purposes of certain regulatory filings.