Modesta Real Estate advises LAUFEN/ ROCA-Group on property sale AUSTRIA (Wilhelmsburg/ Vienna) - Modesta Real Estate, International Associate of Savills has been exclusively mandated with the sale of the LAUFEN Austria site in Wilhelmsburg (Lower Austria). Just before the year end the structured bidding process has been closed. Purchaser is a private investor.
The site sold is c. 75,000m2. 58,500m2 of existing buildings was initiated in March 2023 through an open bidding process. Eight bidders took part in the multi-stage tender which has been running over the past 9 months. Zochling Immobilien GmbH (based approx. 20 km from the property) was selected as the final bidder for the transaction.
The company, which specializes in real estate development, was able to convince the committees of the ROCA Group (parent company of LAUFEN Austria AG) with a coherent overall package.
As part of this package, a sale-and-lease-back agreement was negotiated, enabling LAUFEN Austria AG to keep its Austrian headquarters in Wilhelmsburg.
Christian Schafer, CEO of LAUFEN Austria AG, commented: "The name LAUFEN is strongly associated with the town of Wilhelmsburg. From the very beginning, it was a key priority for us to find a buyer with whom we could maintain this connection. In Modesta Real Estate, we had a professional advisor on our
side who guided us through the entire sales process, helping us to achieve the best result for LAUFEN and the ROCA Group."
While manufacturing activities at the site were already shut down in 2020, parts of the warehouses and offices have continued to be used since then. LAUFEN Austria AG will lease back these parts of the property as part of the sale and leaseback agreement, in addition to expanding the office facilities and adding a modern building extension.
Image provided by Modesta.
