Atrium acquires AFI Palac Pardubice in Czech Republic for €83 million (CZ)

Atrium European Real Estate Limited, a leading owner, operator and developer of shopping centers and retail real estate in Central and Eastern Europe, announces that it has acquired the AFI Palác shopping center in Pardubice, Czech Republic, from AFI Europe N.V. for a consideration of €83 million. The acquisition is financed using existing cash resources.
The acquisition is in line with Atrium’s strategy to acquire prime income producing shopping centers in order to become the dominant player in its core markets of the Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia, and follows the recent agreement for the acquisition of the Focus Mall in Bydgoszcz, Poland for €122 million as well as the successful issuance of a €350 million unsecured eight year Eurobond.
AFI Palác Pardubice was originally developed in 2008 and comprises 20,900 m² of retail GLA across four stores, with the ground and first floors dedicated to retail and the second floor occupied by a 3,255 m² Cinema City along with a 1,725 m² conference center. There is also a c.542 space underground car park.
The freehold property is currently 96.4% let to a number of anchor tenants including H&M, Deichmann, Intersport, New Yorker and Lindex. Other high-profile brands in the center include Bata, Promod and Sephora. There is also a large Tesco owned and occupied superstore adjacent to the centre.
Commenting on the acquisition, Rachel Lavine, Group CEO, said: “This acquisition follows quickly after we signed an agreement to acquire the Focus Mall in Bydgoszcz, Poland and demonstrates our ability to deploy capital into quality assets, dominant in their catchment areas within the strong cities of our core markets. The AFI Palác complements and further strengthens our existing Czech portfolio, as well as enlarges our exposure to one of the strongest economies in the region.”
Cushman & Wakefield has advised Atrium on the acquisition.Alexander Rafajlovic of Cushman & Wakefield said: “This transaction represents the positive shift in investor sentiment towards established, dominant shopping centres in regional cities across Central Europe.”
Source: Atrium