Rockspring, on behalf of a separate account mandate, has sold a portfolio of 22 Eroski supermarkets together with a majority interest in Parque Comercial Abadia, a retail park outside Toledo, to the Spanish REIT Grupo Lar. The total transaction value is €110.7m.
Rockspring acquired the assets in 2011, when few international investors were active in the Spanish real estate market following the global financial crisis.
Parque Comercial Abadia, one of the top five retail parks in Spain, comprises a total of 54,100 m² GLA as well as 2,860 car park spaces. The 70% interest purchased by Grupo Lar is 100% let, with anchor tenants including Decathlon, Media Markt and Alcampo, the second biggest hypermarket chain in Spain.
The 22 supermarket assets, which comprise both neighbourhood grocery stores and edge-of-town standalone units, are let entirely to Eroski for a further 14-year minimum lease term. Providing 28,822 m² of GLA in total, they are located mainly in the Basque country and Majorca.
John Thompson, Director of Rockspring Iberia, said, “Over the period since we acquired these properties, the Spanish real estate market has benefitted from an improving economic backdrop and increased investment, which combined with successfully implemented asset management initiatives, has driven capital values and in turn, the excellent performance achieved with these investments. We are pleased to have passed these top quality assets on to an institutional specialist like Grupo Lar and to have delivered a robust return on investment for our client.”
Retail Partners Europe, Cushman & Wakefield and Hogan Lovells advised Rockspring on the Abadia transaction, while JLL and Eversheds Nicea were advisors on the Eroski portfolio.
