New York-based Blackstone Group is to build a real estate investment platform in Turkey after making its debut there.
It has agreed to pay over €200m to Redevco for three Turkish assets, including the 53,000 m2 Gordion Shopping Center in Ankara, the 33,000 m2 Erzurum Shopping Center, Erzurum, both completed in 2009, and the recently opened 19,000 m2 Magnesia Shopping Center in Manisa.
Ken Caplan, head of European real estate at Blackstone, said: “We see Turkey as a promising market for additional investment in the retail sector.”
As part of the deal, a local Redevco team will transfer to Blackstone and continue managing the assets, which form 3% of the company’s €7.3bn European portfolio.
Redevco chief executive officer, Andrew Vaughan, said the sale was in line with its new strategy centered on its key markets of Belgium, central Europe, France, Germany, Spain/Portugal, Switzerland, The Netherlands and the UK.
Patrick van Dooyeweert, Redevco’s managing director, presently heads 45 real estate professionals in Istanbul co-ordinating the Amsterdam-headquartered company’s Turkish activities. Vaughan said: “Blackstone has significant expansion plans in Turkey and will take on our team to continue growing the business.”
Head of European retail investment at property consultant CBRE, John Welham, said: “This is about the fundamentals in the country. Turkey has a high proportion of young people in a growing population with increasing spending power, which is perfect for retail expansion.”
“Redevco decided to focus on their more traditional trading markets in western and central Europe. It is looking more towards solid income and wealth preservation rather than towards the new opportunities that Blackstone is seeking.”
Last year Blackstone launched a Polish retail real estate platform, King’s Street Retail, after making its maiden acquisition in the country with the purchase of the 77,595 m2 Magnolia Park, in Wroclaw, for around €130m from Polish fund Octova.
The new fund was seeded with three shopping centres and a fourth purchase is under way. The assets include the 31,000 m2 Galeria Twierdza in Klodzko; the 24,000 m2 Galeria Twierdza in Zamosc; and the Galeria Tecza in Kalisz.
