Greenman Open, one of the largest German food retail-focused property funds on the market, has entered into a €95.5 mln framework agreement with German developer Schoofs Immobilien to acquire three new food-anchored retail assets in Germany.
Commenting on the agreement, James McEvoy, head of acquisitions at Dublin-headquartered Greenman, said: 'This deal is part of our strategy to innovate and create new ways of working with our partners to unlock opportunities in the German food retail sector.'
The new centres will comprise a combination of retail parks - Fachmarktzentrum (FMZ) - and hybrid centres anchored by major German supermarket chains Rewe, Aldi and Lidl. The assets will be located in Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate, in what Greenman describes as 'strong regional cities', and will have a total lettable area of 29,691 m2 on completion. Greenman said that tenancy agreements equated to a combined weighted average remaining lease term of 14.60 years.
McEvoy added: 'As well as highlighting our continued confidence in the food and necessity retail sector, which has proved extremely resilient during the current crisis, it also provides us with an opportunity to benefit from the significant dislocation between demand and availability of suitable food retail property across Germany.
'Greenman Open, the largest German food-retail focused fund on the market has continued to see steady inflows of equity, despite the volatility of the past few months, as investors look for income. By partnering with Schoofs, we will get better access to development opportunities in excellent locations, allowing us to continue to expand the portfolio and reach our target assets under management of €1 bn by 2021.'
Managing director of Schoofs, Mohamed Younis, said: 'This deal shows that despite the Covid-19 lockdown, construction works are continuing as normal in Germany. It is also a great opportunity for us to partner with a reputable and reliable international buyer as we push forward our plans to develop these three assets.'
