Pep Shopping Centre, one of Germany’s top 5 shopping destinations, gains new owners

Pep Shopping Centre, one of Germany’s top 5 shopping destinations, gains new owners

(IN BRIEF) Generali Real Estate and ECE Real Estate Partners have acquired a 50% stake each in the Pep Shopping Centre, located in Munich’s Neuperlach district. The deal was conducted on behalf of the Generali Shopping Center Fund and the ECE Progressive Income Growth Fund respectively. The vendor of the asset is Nuveen Real Estate, which acted as an investment advisor to the TIAA-CNP partnership that previously owned the property in a joint venture. Pep Shopping Centre is one of the top five shopping destinations in Germany, with approximately 12 million annual visitors and over €250 million in turnover. The shopping centre has achieved a BREEAM “Excellent” rating from an operational perspective and “Very Good” overall. The new owners plan to make further investments to enhance the shopping center’s sustainability credentials.

(PRESS RELEASE) MILAN/ HAMBURG, 30-Mar-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — ECE Group GmbH & Co. KG, a real estate development company, and Generali Real Estate have jointly acquired the Pep Shopping Centre in Munich’s Neuperlach district. Generali Real Estate purchased a 50% stake on behalf of the specialized pan-European ‘Generali Shopping Center Fund’ (GSCF), while ECE Real Estate Partners acquired the other 50% stake for the ‘ECE Progressive Income Growth Fund’. The asset’s vendor is Nuveen Real Estate, which acted as the Investment Advisor to the TIAA-CNP partnership that owned the property in a joint venture.

Pep Shopping Centre is among the top 5 shopping destinations in Germany, attracting around 12 million visitors annually and generating over €250 million in turnover. The shopping center’s location in Munich’s dynamic district of Neuperlach, extending over 70,000 sqm GLA, ensures high footfall, sales figures, and full occupancy, thanks to its excellent tenant line-up, which includes Primark, Edeka, Kaufland, Müller Drugstore, H&M, and Saturn. Furthermore, it boasts excellent urban integration on a public transport hub and densely populated surroundings. The shopping center underwent extensive modernization and expansion between 2016 and 2018 and has been managed by ECE Marketplaces for over 30 years.

Aldo Mazzocco, CEO at Generali Real Estate S.p.A., commented: ”A second important investment for our pan-European Shopping Centre Fund, the Pep acquisition is fully in line with the investment strategy we have set for the retail asset class 5 years ago: investing very selectively and with prudence in shopping centers which well represent the so-called Dominant, Destination, Diversified segment. Pep makes a strong central-European addition to our international portfolio, next to Puerto Venecia in Zaragoza and CityLife Shopping District in Milan.”

Volker Kraft, Managing Partner at ECE Real Estate Partners, said: “We are delighted to make the investment in Pep shopping centre jointly with our partner Generali Real Estate. The asset stands out as a winner in the increasingly polarising shopping centre landscape. This makes it a great fit for our ECE Progressive Income Growth Fund that comprises a €2 billion portfolio of outstanding shopping centres in Europe.”

Myles White, Head of Retail, Europe at nuveen Real Estate, commented: “We are extremely proud of what we have accomplished with the Pep shopping centre. Through active management and prudent investment, we believe we have curated a best in class asset in a strategic location in Munich and we believe this deal demonstrates the continued investor demand for high quality retail assets that can continue to meet evolving consumer demands and trends. We are pleased to close on this transaction with Generali, Axis Retail Partners and ECE who we have no doubt will continue to drive the success of the asset.”

Pep Shopping Centre has achieved a BREEAM “Excellent” rating from an operational perspective and “Very Good” overall. The new owners plan to invest further in enhancing the shopping center’s sustainability credentials.

Generali Real Estate received advice from Axis Retail Partners, which is part of the Generali Investments ecosystem of asset management firms.

GENERALI REAL ESTATE
Generali Real Estate S.p.A. is one of the world’s leading real estate asset managers with over €39 billion of assets under management as of end 2022. It leverages the expertise of more than 370 professionals, with operating units located in the main European cities.

The company’s integrated business model covers the full scope of asset management activities and the entire real estate value chain. A series of cross-border investment vehicles, managed by the specialized asset manager Generali Real Estate S.p.A. Società di gestione del risparmio, aims to create long-term value for investors with a core/core +profile by investing in assets characterized by good locations, high liquidity and strong underlying leasing dynamics. The portfolio under management comprises a unique mix of historical and modern properties, ranging from landmark buildings to new architectural masterpieces, which has enabled the company to develop best-in-class skills in the fields of technological innovation, sustainability and urban development.

Generali Real Estate is part of the Generali Investments ecosystem of asset management firms.

ECE Real Estate Partners
ECE Real Estate Partners is licensed as an alternative investment fund manager (AIFM) and, for more than ten years, has been successfully investing equity commitments from international institutional investors such as insurance companies, sovereignwealth funds, and pension funds in shopping centres with strong market positions and value-add potential. With a managed portfolio of assets having a total fair market value of over 5 billion euros, ECE Real Estate Partners is Europe’s leading institutional fund management company specializing in shopping centres. In addition to the continued expansion of investments in shopping centres, ECE Real Estate Partners is currently broadening its investment approach to hotel properties.

As part of the ECE Group, ECE Real Estate Partners can rely on the comprehensive network and extensive retail and hotel expertise of the group of companies, which has more than 55 years of experience in the development and operation of shopping centres and is among the top hotel developers in Europe. The ECE Group offers asset management, project development expertise, investment management, and other full-service real estate services for all asset classes under one roof and manages real estate assets with a total value of more than 31 billion euros. Founded in 1965 by mail-order pioneer Professor Werner Otto (1909–2011), the company is still owned by the Otto family and is managed by Alexander Otto as the CEO of the ECE Group. www.ecerep.com and www.ece.com

Media contact:

Generali Real Estate
media@gre.generali.com

Elena Scovazzi
M: +39 366 6644707
elena.scovazzi@generali-invest.com

Florian Ciornei
M: +39 338 6825555
florian.ciornei@generali-invest.com

SOURCE: ECE Group GmbH & Co. KG