Meyer Bergman, the private equity real estate manager, has appointed Josip Kardun as Chief Investment Officer as it looks to expand its mixed-use focus across core European cities, with an increasing shift towards the office, residential and leisure sectors.During his 20-year real estate career, Kardun has worked with some of the world’s leading investors. His expertise spans multiple markets and asset classes, with a track record covering large-scale acquisitions, asset management, property management and growing listed firms.
Joining under the role of CIO, he will work alongside founder Marcus Meijer to expand Meyer Bergman’s European footprint as it looks to capitalise on the continent’s continued urbanisation. Over the last five years, Meyer Bergman has focused heavily on mixed-use projects across core European cities, in prime locations underpinned by strong fundamentals and proximity to transport hubs or major local destinations.Meyer Bergman has a number of landmark projects across Europe, including:·
- London – The £300 million Borough Yards mixed-use scheme, located in one of London’s most dynamic areas near London Bridge station, and adjacent to Borough Market, which draws over 16 million visitors annually; the scheme will create new restaurant, cinema and retail space as well as around 60,000 sq. ft. of office space.
- Paris – The office redevelopment of Yahoo’s former headquarters located in the 17th arrondissement of Paris, an affluent area with excellent public transport connections; the 9,000 sq. m. project will create significant new Grade A office space alongside co-living apartments.·
- Milan – The Corti Segrete mixed-use residential and retail project on Corso Buenos Aires, one of the busiest commercial areas in Milan benefitting from an average of 13 million visitors annually; in addition to 8,000 sq. m. of Grade A retail units, the scheme will see the creation of over 160 high quality apartments for sale
- Oslo – The Promenaden Portfolio, located in the heart of Oslo’s premier shopping district around Karl Johans Gate and in close proximity to the city’s main tourist destinations; the portfolio has attracted significant interest from international luxury brands and also benefits from 35,000 sq. m. of quality office space
Kardun joins Meyer Bergman from European real estate manager Multi Corporation, where he served as CEO. He was appointed by Blackstone, which had acquired Multi, and developed the business into a pan-European asset management platform serving both Blackstone and external institutional clients.
Josip Kardun, CIO at Meyer Bergman, said: “This is an incredible time to be joining Meyer Bergman. With a track record of having managed over EUR 7.5 billion of assets, the company has been expanding its reach into office and residential markets over the years. Its vertically integrated platform offers exceptional opportunities to identify attractive off-market investments across core European locations and generate value for its investors.”
Marcus Meijer, CEO at Meyer Bergman, said: “Internal migration and urbanisation are key growth drivers we are seeing across all core European cities and this is supporting growth across an array of real estate asset classes. By focusing on the most resilient and highly liquid markets, and concentrating our investments on select, high-footfall micro locations, we see huge potential to create value from these trends.“Josip brings with him vast experience from the listed real estate and global investment spheres that will play a key role in our expansion. His expertise in finance-raising and his knowledge of capital structures, governance and his broad, multi-asset experience will be a huge value-add for all our current and future investors.”
Prior to Multi, Kardun served as CEO at European listed company, Atrium European Real Estate, managing over €3.5 billion in assets, 400 employees and €220 million of annual cashflow. The company was part of the global network owned by the $11 billion Tel Aviv-listed investor, Gazit Globe.
Before that, Kardun spent seven years at German real estate group ECE Projektmanagement GmbH, owned by the Otto family, and known for offices, retail and logistics developments as well as a recent acquisition of 2,100 multifamily units in the UK. He went from running a 700-person property management business outside of the German markets to becoming the CIO and Head of Mergers and Acquisitions and Transaction Management Group.
