Second ECE Fund acquires two shopping centers in Poland – EuropaProperty

The two centres are premium assets with a strong, established market position in their respective catchment area. They have a positive turnover and footfall development, strong anchor tenants as well as value-add potential. The assets are sold by Atrium Real Estate Europe, who has been managing both assets in the past. The signing of the transaction took place on Friday whilst the closing is planned for the third quarter. The ECE will take over the management and leasing of both centers, increasing the assets under management in Poland to a total of ten centers.

Atrium Felicity in Lublin, opened in March 2014, accommodates across a leasable area of 77,000 sqm, 120 shops and offers 3,000 parking spaces. Its tenants include fashion labels like H&M, Reserved and the Inditex brands (Zara, Bershka and Pull&Bear), as well as a Media Markt and a movie theater. The center is located in Lublin, which has a population of 340,000 and a catchment area of 740,000 inhabitants. It is located at a main arterial road in the south-east of Lublin.

Atrium Koszalin opened in November 2008, accommodates, across a leasable area of 43,000 sqm, approximately 120 shops. The adjacent retail park is part of the transaction, comprising of approximately 15,000 sqm leasable area and 1,500 parking spaces. The main tenants include Adidas, Decathlon, Pull&Bear, Stradivarius, Tesco, Media Markt, C&A and H&M. The center has a strong market position with a catchment area of more than 280,000 inhabitants. It is located at one of the main traffic hubs in the southeast of Koszalin.

“The acquisition of the shopping centres in Lublin and Koszalin are in line with our strategy to focus on dominant shopping centers in excellent locations with a balanced tenant and sector mix. The two centers offer unique value-add opportunities in a market environment for retail assets, characterized by increasing polarization,” commented Dr. Volker Kraft, CEO of ECE Real Estate Partners.