Real Estate Marketing & Beyond
In UK real estate moves last week Hammerson acquired four shopping centers in a deal estimated to be worth £254 million. This signals the firms emergence as the country's biggest retail landlord. The announcement the company acquired a Hermes and partners investment, Junction Fund, is a key move given it is the largest this year for Hammerson.
A new Hammerson development - retail space
The CEO of Hammerson, David Atkins, elaborated on the move further:
“Following our investments in Value Retail, Victoria Quarter and the Whitgift Centre, this acquisition is another demonstration of Hammerson deploying capital into one of our three defined areas of retail focus. There is continued strong consumer demand for the ease and convenience of retail parks, and that consumer demand is being reflected in the increasing requirements of a range of fashion and catering retailers for space in retail parks. This portfolio acquisition on attractive terms enhances our income profile and will be actively managed to grow rents and capitalise on development opportunities, maximising returns for shareholders.
These moves by Hammerson appear to be part of a bigger trend in UK real estate to move investments into a more targeted space. Regional shopping and office space in and around London, being two areas Hammerson and others seem focused on. The so called Junction Fund is made up of shopping parks in Bristol, Glasgow, and Telford as well as retail giants like H&M, Gap and a few others.
The acquisition also speaks of undeveloped land as part of the deal, specifically the Oldbury Shopping Park Development. There, Hammerson has bought into roughly 16 acres of potential across the way from Oldbury town centre. That move along spell a ray of hope for industries tied to real estate development, namely the jobs sector.
For more information on this recent Hammerson investment, please visit the link provided or check out the firm's Facebook profile for images.
