The Mint Investments real estate and investment group duly paid the auctioned purchase price of 15.1 million for the Olomouc City shopping center, thereby completing the largest real estate transaction of its kind in history in the Czech Republic.
This involuntary auction of a shopping center with a starting price of 8.6 million was conducted by the auction house Naxos a. s. in the Sacre Coeur Chapel. Clearly there are strong and flexible local investors on the market in the Czech Republic that are able to pay such purchase price in the required 30-day period.
Sebastien Dejanovski, a Partner at Mint Investments, added: "We are glad that we managed to acquire this property for our portfolio at such an attractive price. This real estate transaction was unique in many regards; such a large complex has never been sold in the form of an involuntary auction.
"There are currently strong tenants in the center and we are confident that we can unlock the real potential of Olomouc City. Further, it is important that the shopping center perfectly fits into our portfolio of retail properties. Mint currently manages the shopping centers Laugaricio in Trencín, Rýnovka in Jablonec, and the Cestlice Retail Park in Prague and several others. Breda&Weinstein in Opava will open in November 2012, a demanding development project right in the heart of the town's historical center."
Lukás Schirl, the group Partner responsible for asset management, added on the acquisition of the Olomouc shopping center: "As far as the future of the center is concerned, we will invest both our time and funds in capital expenditure.
"Though it is not possible to give any more details at this time, we will capitalize upon the center's strengths, such as the very popular Cinestar multiplex and neighboring Globus hypermarket. We will definitely be striving to expand the offer of shops and services. Olomouc City is already one of the most popular shopping locations in the region and its position will strengthen further in the future."
Source: Crest Communications
