Oxford Properties Group (“Oxford”), a leading global real estate investor, developer and manager, today announced the completion of the £518 million sale of a portfolio of 16 retail parks across the UK to Redevco, one of Europe’s largest privately owned real estate managers. The portfolio was assembled by Oxford via the M7 Real Estate specialist platform it acquired in 2021.
The transaction marks a significant milestone for Redevco in building one of the largest retail park asset management platforms in Europe. Redevco currently manages circa €4.2 billion Gross Asset Value across more than 175 retail park assets, predominantly in Belgium and Germany.
Neil Slater, CEO of Redevco, commented: "This acquisition is a welcome addition to our pan-European platform, demonstrating our confidence in this sector. Retail parks combine cash-flow resilience and adaptability, making them a compelling investment. Having focused on this sector internationally for years, we’re delighted to supplement our holdings at a fascinating time for the UK market."
The acquired portfolio encompasses approximately 2.1 million square feet of Net Internal Area and is anchored by a diversified mix of tenants, including well-established brands in the food, DIY, and discount sectors.
James Boadle, Senior Vice President at Oxford Properties, commented: “This sale crystalises the value we have created through our strategic move into the retail sector during the period of dislocation created by covid and by leveraging our M7 Real Estate platform to aggregate and asset manage a high quality, institutional-grade portfolio of retail warehouses. The assets were acquired off-market allowing us to gain exposure at an attractive price point and benefit from the arbitrage vs comparable supply chain and urban logistics assets. Having delivered on our business plan we have chosen to divest and recycle capital into new opportunities across the UK and Europe.”
The assets are in core urban centres across the UK, with a strong concentration in South and around Southeast England.
The acquisition is a strategic step in Redevco’s growth ambitions. With 25 years of experience as a pan-European retail park owner and asset manager, Redevco has a proven track record of enhancing value within this resilient asset class, which continues to meet essential daily needs despite evolving market dynamics.
David Ebbrell, CEO of M7 Real Estate, added: “Having acquired these assets at a time when we saw deep value in the retail warehouse sector, our asset management teams then undertook a series of income enhancing and value enhancing projects to create an institutional quality portfolio which is well positioned for the future. We now look forward to recycling the proceeds of this sale into new opportunities.”
The deal was brokered off market by Glenlyon Real Estate with strategic investment and asset management advice from Staunton Whiteman, CSP and McMullen Real Estate. CMS provided comprehensive legal support. Oxford Properties & M7 Real Estate were advised by Savills.
