AEW's Europe City Retail Fund has entered the Dutch market with the acquisition of a high-street asset in Rotterdam.
The three-storey corner-site property is on the prime city centre location of Lijnbaan and is currently let to fashion retailer Pull and Bear. High-end fashion brands such as Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger and Levi's also have stores in the vicinity.
Dutch land registry records revealed that the transaction volume was €17.1 mln.
Rotterdam's main shopping boulevard of Coolsingel, which runs parallel to Lijnbaan, is currently undergoing a major modernisation programme, including traffic calming, which is due to be completed in 2021.
The deal brings the total value of AEW's Europe City Retail Fund to more than €630 mln across 22 assets in 10 cities including Paris, Madrid, Milan, Copenhagen and Glasgow.
Frédérique Weber, country manager for the Netherlands at AEW, said: 'The acquisition is strongly aligned to the fund’s strategy and demonstrates our ability to leverage our local expertise to source attractive investment opportunities.'
Christina Ofschonka, Europe City Retail Fund manager, added: 'After recently completing the fund’s first acquisition in the UK, I am pleased that this has been closely followed by the fund’s entry into the Dutch market. This acquisition adds another high quality asset to the fund’s portfolio as we continue to deploy capital into a strong pipeline of selected opportunities across Europe’s largest metropolitan areas.'
AEW was advised on the transaction by Brickstone and Loyens & Loeff, while City Real Estate and BNP Paribas acted for the vendor.
