Buying freeholds on Europe’s most prime shopping strips is at the heart of new plans by Oxford Properties to create a C$50bn (£27bn) portfolio by 2018.
The Canada-based company said its £300m purchase of 51,000 sq ft of New Bond Street shops, which completed this week, marked the start of ambitions to build a luxury retail portfolio in London, Paris and other European cities.
Paul Brundage, senior managing director of Oxford Properties Europe, said that the company will diversify from London offices, to include retail buildings in elite shopping areas.
The move will aid Oxford’s target of increasing its $27bn global portfolio to $50bn by 2018, of which $10bn will come from Europe.
It teamed up with RLG Real Estate Partners, part of Cartier parent Richemont, to buy the five properties at 130-137 New Bond Street, W1, in a 50:50 joint venture, as tipped by Estates Gazette last month (12 July, p33).
Oxford, the real estate arm of the OMERS Worldwide group of companies, made its first foray into UK retail by buying the Royal Exchange, EC3, for £86.5m in January.
Buying freeholds on Europe’s most prime shopping strips is at the heart of new plans by Oxford Properties to create a C$50bn (£27bn) portfolio by 2018.
The Canada-based company said its £300m purchase of 51,000 sq ft of New Bond Street shops, which completed this week, marked the start of ambitions to build a luxury retail portfolio in London, Paris and other European cities.
Paul Brundage, senior managing director of Oxford Properties Europe, said that the company will diversify from London offices, to include retail buildings in elite shopping areas.
The move will aid Oxford’s target of increasing its $27bn global portfolio to $50bn by 2018, of which $10bn will come from Europe.
It teamed up with RLG Real Estate Partners, part of Cartier parent Richemont, to buy the five properties at 130-137 New Bond Street, W1, in a 50:50 joint venture, as tipped by Estates Gazette last month (12 July, p33).
Oxford, the real estate arm of the OMERS Worldwide group of companies, made its first foray into UK retail by buying the Royal Exchange, EC3, for £86.5m in January.
Joanna.Bourke@estatesgazette.com
