Savills Investment Management is planning to raise £360m (€419m) for a UK retail parks fund backed by Straits Real Estate.

The international real estate manager said Straits Real Estate and The Land Managers (TLM) are cornerstone investors in the fund, without disclosing any financial details.

Singapore-based conglomerate Straits Trading revealed in a Singapore Exchange filing last week that its real estate subsidiary is committing up to £60m to Savills IM UK Value Boxes Fund.

TLM is the real estate investment division of the JL Family Office (JLFO), an investment holding company was founded by John Lim, the co-founder and CEO of ARA Asset Management.

Savills IM said the fund will seek to acquire retail park assets with relatively low rents, preferring food anchors and discount retailer tenants as well as some bulky operators.

The fund will be managed by Harry de Ferry Foster, head of UK at Savills IM, who also manages the Charities Property Fund.

The UK retail sector has had a torrid time over the last five years, particularly the high street and shopping centre sub-sectors, De Ferry Foster said.

“This new fund is targeting assets in a sub-sector which has been overlooked and oversold but has proven its resilience to the headwinds facing the sector.

“This is a good opportunity to secure assets with a high and secure income yield and we believe it will be very attractive to investors,” De Ferry Foster said.

Lim said the commitment to the fund is TLM’s first investment into the UK.

”The country is experiencing a rapid recovery and its growth is set to be the fastest in Europe. By investing in a defensive retail asset class, we hope to capitalise on the pent-up demand from the COVID-19 restrictions over the last couple of years.”

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