Previously, this responsibility was divided between two different service providers, CBRE Global Investors and Savills. The client and owner of the center is GIC, the long-term sovereign wealth fund of Singapore, which is already invested in other centers managed by ECE Marketplaces through the shopping center funds of ECE Real Estate Partners.
With a leasable area of more than 100,000 m² and over 210 shops, “Romaest” is one of the largest shopping centers in the greater Rome region and boasts a high footfall of approx. 10 million visitors per year*, a diverse and high-quality mix of tenants, a dominant size and market position, as well as a convenient location directly on the A24 motorway only 20 kilometers from downtown Rome. Tenants include international concepts such as Adidas, Douglas, Sephora, Superdry, and the Inditex brands Bershka, Pull & Bear, Stradivarius, and Zara, Italian concepts such as Alcott, Calzedonia, Pellizzari, and Scarpe & Scarpe, as well as various restaurants and a UCI movie theater. In addition, the second Primark store in the Rome region has just opened this June.
“We are very delighted about the trust that our partner, GIC, has placed in us with this contract,” said Joanna Fisher, CEO of ECE Marketplaces, and responsible for ECE’s shopping center business. “Particularly in this challenging time for retail, this serves as a special indication and a sign that we jointly believe in the future of bricks-and-mortar retail. We have a lot of ideas on how we can further develop Romaest and make it even more successful in the future.”
Together with the owner GIC, ECE plans to implement various measures to further develop the center and thereby further strengthen its market position, building on successful initiatives implemented by the previous operators with the establishment of Primark. These measures shall be planned and coordinated by ECE and GIC in the next few months.
With the new contract, the Italian branch of ECE now manages a total of four shopping centers in Italy: In addition to Romaest, these are Adigeo in Verona, Megaló in Chieti, and La Cartiera in Pompei, which all experienced a successful further development and increase in performance since their opening or the acquisition by the ECE funds and the management takeover by ECE.
