Australian shopping centre owner Westfield Holdings, is to set up a European investment arm to rival its $2.5bn US operation.
It has already taken an office in Mayfair, W1, and is scouring the UK for a retail investment to launch a multi-billion-pound spending spree.
Westfield’s European director, Peter Allen, said that there was no specific allocation of funds for Europe but added: “We hope to be a similar size in Europe as we are in the US. Shopping centres are all we do and, as we’re the largest in Australia and the third-largest in the states, we are looking to expand into Europe.”
In the US, Westfield owns 3.3m sq m (35.5m sq ft) of retail space in 38 shopping centres.
Late last year it paid $1.4bn for 12 shopping centres in the western US from TrizecHahn. Worldwide, Westfield Holdings manages 81 major regional centres in Australia, the US, New Zealand and Malaysia with more than 5.6m sq m (60.3m sq ft) under management and 11,750 retailers. But it does not yet own anything in Europe.
Allen denied rumours that he was poised to make an offer for a large UK regional centre. “We are investigating both the market and individual opportunities but we haven’t done a deal yet. We’ve looked at most of the properties that have come to the market over the past six months but it’s been to see what’s available.”
One agent close to Westfield in the UK said: “They’ve been active in the UK for longer than people think. It doesn’t make sense for them to assemble smaller things, size is not an object for them.”
The group is split into four listed entities. It operates as a REIT in the US and has a similar structure in Australia. Its worldwide value is around Australian $15bn, close to £6bn.
Allen said that he was aware of similar vehicles in Luxembourg but said it was too early to decide on a structure or a location for a European listing. Westfield also does direct development and is looking for UK centres with potential for expansion.
EGi News 08/02/99
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