Opened in 2015, the c. 40,700 sq m shopping park in Copenhagen is a hybrid between a retail park and shopping center. It has 24 tenants and is anchored by two supermarkets and two large electronic stores. BIG offers a tenant mix of fashion, furniture/DIY stores, restaurants, cafes, a cinema, gym and indoor playground.
“As a convenience shopping destination, BIG has proven to be resilient against the transitioning retail landscape,” commented Mark Kouters, Fund Manager for ECF, CBRE Investment Management. “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.”
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 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 stabilize.”
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.
