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May 28, 2020

Around two and a half months after the shutdown, the Covid-19 crisis still keeps the retail real estate and placemaking industry well and truly on its toes. Even though stores and marketplaces in many European countries have mostly reopened, dramatic declines in frequencies and revenues remain more of a rule instead of an exception.

In recent years, F&B has been hailed as the retail-centric development equivalent of a knight in shining armor; an offer that cannot be replicated online, that delivers customers an experience worth seeking-out and returning to time and again. The onset and impact of Covid-19 highlights the importance of a successful F&B strategy and the development of appealing F&B destinations that respond to how the customer of the future will shop day and night, and how mixed-use places are stitched together.

IMMOFINANZ started the first quarter of the 2020 financial year with strong operational performance: Rental income rose by 13.4% to EUR 74.0 million, above all due to the expansion of the portfolio through acquisitions and completions as well as growth of 1.9% in like-for-like rental income. The results of asset management increased by 18.1% to EUR 59.5 million, and the results of operations were 18.0% higher at EUR 43.5 million. However, the revaluation results of EUR -45.0 million from standing investments and goodwill reflect the adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Net profit for Q1 2020 was therefore negative at EUR -37.6 million.

Eurocommercial announces it has successfully reopened all of its centres in Italy, France and Belgium. The entire portfolio is now open again, as all centres in Sweden have remained open over the past months. Early footfall and sales data from the first few weeks since the end of the lockdown are encouraging.