Fund manager AEW has acquired three prime high street retail units in central Milan on behalf of the City Retail Fund for €44 mln.
The portfolio was acquired from a fund managed by Grosvenor Europe.
The three retail units are located at Milan's Via Torino 22/Piazza Beltrade, 1, and comprise 1,655 m2 of total gross leasable area which is fully let to Pull&Bear, Pandora and AW Lab.
Following AEW’s purchase of the adjacent 851 m2 Muji store in July, the Fund now has full ownership of one of the most significant retail blocks on Via Torino.
The City Retail Fund focuses on building a portfolio of income producing retail assets that are well located within European tier one and capital city centres. It has over €350 mln of assets under management following this acquisition.
Christina Ofschonka, fund executive of the City Retail Fund commented: 'The acquisition of this first class retail asset, together with the Muji store we acquired in July, demonstrate AEW’s expertise in sourcing prime opportunities by leveraging its network of local teams. Going forward, we will continue to diversify the Fund’s geographic spread and we already have a number of other prime assets in the pipeline.'
Massimiliano Bernes, Country Head of Italy for AEW said: 'This is the third Italian investment for the Fund, demonstrating our confidence in the market and the opportunities that our strong local sourcing capabilities can provide.”'
AEW was advised by Gatti Pavesi Bianchi, legal advisor; Prelios, technical advisor; Oxalis Real Estate and Studio Colombo, corporate and tax advisor. While Grosvenor, the seller, was advised by Grimaldi, legal advisor; Agi-RE, technical advisor and BDO, corporate and tax advisors.
