Nestlé Creates Thousands of Jobs in Cascais

23 September 2017

In the first hiring phase, the multinational will create 600 highly qualified jobs, a number that should double in the second phase.

Nestlé will create thousands of jobs in Cascais. An announcement to be made by Carlos Carreiras, current mayor of Cascais and candidate of the PSD/CDS political party coalition in municipal elections. The jobs are a part of the company’s real estate restructuring project in Quinta da Alagoa, in Carcavelos, which involves an investment of 50 million euros and the creation of 2,500 jobs.

According to Expresso, Nestlé will offer, in a first phase, 600 highly qualified positions, a number that should double in the second stage to a total of 1,200 jobs. The Quinta da Alagoa project, the newspaper says, foresees the transfer of the Legrand electrical material plant in Carcavelos to another area of the municipality of Cascais. In its place, a new complex will arise from renovations to the existing structure, which will prepare it for other uses.

The renovation will create spaces for offices, university residences, commerce, restaurants and services in a total area of 45,000 square meters, in addition to a gymnasium pavilion. Nestlé’s new shared services centre will take up a part of the new office space. According to a source from within the municipality, the new project came about from a project with the Universidade Nova’s new campus, which will soon open its School of Business & Economics, also in Carcavelos.

At Expresso, the current mayor of Cascais guaranteed the city would sign all contracts associated with this project by the end of September. The announcement and contract signing also had no relation to the municipal elections next weekend. “We have been in this for a year and a half,” the mayor concluded.

Original Story: Economia Online

Translation: Richard Turner

Glicínias Plaza in Aveiro To Undergo Major Renovations

21 September 2017

The mall will have an area of 41,000 square meters, with 120 stores, a playground and 2,000 free parking spaces.

In 1999, Aveiro, a city famous for a dessert made with egg yolks and sugar, inaugurated the Glicínias Plaza, a 25,000-square-meter shopping centre with 75 shops and 18 restaurants. Starting in January 2018, the mall will undergo a major upgrade for two years, becoming the largest in the region.

During nearly two years – the re-inauguration is scheduled for October 2019 – the expansion works will be intense. In the end, the centre will have two additional floors, 120 stores, a terrace and 2,000 parking spaces, in an area that will total 41,000 square meters.

Also, a playground is planned, and the railway accesses will be improved. The total investment is around 40 million euros.

Despite these changes, the shopping centre will continue operating. According to the Vougainvest Group, the mall’s current owners, “everything will continue to function normally.”

In addition to the shops and restaurants, the Glicínias Plaza has seven 3D movie theatres. Besides the plaza, there is the Forum Aveiro, which will hold the Fashion Night Out on September 29.

Original Story: NiT – Sara Chaves

Translation: Richard Turner

The Locations of Future Mercadona Stores in Portugal Announced

21 September 2017

In all, the Spanish chain will open four supermarkets in Portugal, including in the north.

More than a year ago, in June 2016, the largest Spanish food distributor, Mercadona, announced that it was set to enter the Portuguese market, opening four stores by 2019.

In October of the same year, the chain revealed that the first stores would be opened in Greater Porto. After first announcing supermarkets in Matosinhos and Canidelo, the chain has now announced, to the Spanish newspaper “La Expansión,” the location of the two other stores. One of them will be in the centre of Vila Nova de Gaia, and another will be opened in Gondomar.

In total, the investment is expected to reach 25 million euros. This Thursday, September 21, the Lusa news agency reported that the Spanish supermarket’s logistics centre would be in Póvoa do Varzim. This expansion to Portugal marks the chain’s first investments outside its home country. Founded in 1977, Mercadona has more than 1600 stores and employs 79,000 people in Spain. In Portugal, the company has assured that it will spend more than 50,000 euros training each employee.

Original Story: NiT – Ricardo Farinha

Translation: Richard Turner

More shopping centres? There’s No More Room in Portugal

21 September 2017

The shopping centre market is saturated. Portugal is full of shopping malls, and there is no more space for new ones. The growth of the population and disposable incomes, together with the increasing dynamism of online commerce, do not justify further investments of millions in this business model. Experts believe that further store openings should be confined to street retail.

Cushman & Wakefield (C&W) and the Portuguese Association of Shopping Centres (APCC) see no room for doubt: the market in Portugal has reached maturity and is saturated. “Once the last two developments that are under construction – Évora and Loulé – have opened, what should follow is, above all, a succession of upgrades to existing shopping centres,” says C&W Research Department head Marta Costa.

“Shopping centres are living organisms, unlike office buildings, which are more static.” They deserve remodelling and definition of policies that allow “adaptation to new technologies,” which is “obligatory,” Ms Costa stated to Expresso.

But it is not just the lack of space that threatens shopping centres. E-commerce has become a major competitor. This is leading owners to “increasingly invest in offerings that cannot be sold online”, such as catering, more leisure spaces and live shows, says the analyst, who gives as an example the shopping centre Colombo – which should have a new tower for offices and additional stores on the lower floors.

Street commerce stores are benefiting from the trend. Ms Costa believes that this scenario “is already happening on the main arteries in Lisbon and Porto, and will expand to other streets and other cities.”

The sector employs 300,000 people has a turnover of €9 billion

According to the APCC, the sector has an annual turnover of around 9 billion euros and employs 300,000 people: 100,000 directly and 200,000 indirectly.

According to C&W analysts, the shopping centre market has received investments of roughly 3.5 billion euros since 2013, equivalent to 30% of total direct commercial real estate investment in Portugal in this period and 64% of the investment made by international operators. “The indirect investment in the sector (through the purchase of units of funds specifically dedicated to the management of shopping centres) is estimated to exceed 1.5 billion euros,” the study said.

Original Story: Idealista

Translation: Richard Turner

MAR Shopping Algarve Opens September 27

19 September 2017

MAR Shopping Algarve is scheduled to open on September 27th. This shopping centre is a part of a larger, 82,000 m2 complex that includes an IKEA store and the Designer Outlet Algarve.

The commercial complex was set up in Loulé with the aim of offering customers a unique shopping experience as well as differentiated leisure options. IKEA Group’s investment, which totals 200 million euros, will lead to the creation of 3,000 direct and indirect jobs in the region.

IKEA Centres will promote the MAR Shopping Algarve pre-inauguration event on September 26th at 6:30 p.m.  Paulo Alexandre Ferreira, Secretary of State and Trade, the Loulé city councillor Ana Isabel Machado, Herman Gewert, general director of MAR Shopping Algarve, Vasco Santos, Director of Asset Management IKEA Centres Portugal, Spain and France and Helen Duphorn, Country Retail Manager IKEA Portugal will take part in the ceremony.

Original Story: Magazine Imobiliário

Translation: Richard Turner

Mercadona Invests in Matosinhos Industrial Centre

8 September 2017

The Spanish retailer Mercadona renovated an old industrial centre in Matosinhos, where it set up its Portuguese innovation centre.

The area will total 1,000 square meters spread over two floors, and the company will use the facility to the study of the habits and preferences of Portuguese consumers. Mercadona will inaugurate its first four supermarkets in Portugal, starting in 2019. The facility includes product tasting rooms and kitchens.

Here, the supermarket chain’s specialists will “evaluate the needs of customers, listening to and observing their tastes and preferences.” The information is then passed on to “specialised suppliers so that they can improve existing products or develop new ones,” Mercadona noted in a statement to AICEP.

Original Story: Vida Imobiliária – Ana Tavares

Translation: Richard Turner

ING Finances Investments Worth €67m

14 September 2017

ING has signed two new agreements worth 67 million euros to finance real estate investments in Portugal.

One of the transactions involves a €39 million loan to a Luxembourg fund managed by an international banking group. The loan will finance an asset portfolio, run by FinSolutia, comprising four office buildings in the centre of Lisbon and a hypermarket in the Algarve.

The other is a €28 million loan to a subsidiary of Rockspring Trans European Fund VI LP for the acquisition of two office buildings in Lisbon.

In the last year, ING has granted more than 400 million euros to finance real estate investment in Portugal, such as the Colombo, Coimbra and Viseu Forum shopping centres and the office buildings in Marquês de Pombal. The Portuguese market is increasingly relevant to ING, ” explains Julian Bravo, head of Real Estate Finance for Portugal and Spain. “Our ample pipeline should us allow to continue to intensify our activities in Portugal over the next few months,” he believes.

Original Story: Vida Imobiliária – Ana Tavares

Translation: Richard Turner

Shopping Malls Account for 30% Of Commercial Real Estate Investment Since 2003

13 September 2017

The fact that Portugal ranks among the European countries with the highest density of shopping centres is well-known. But according to Cushman & Wakefield’s latest Shopping Centre report, the sector has raised 3.5 billion euros since 2003, accounting for 30% of the total direct commercial real estate investment in Portugal.

One of the study’s conclusions indicates that international operators accounted for 64% of investments between 2003 and 2017.

According to the consultancy, shopping centres “are not only appealing to consumers and retailers but are also considered one of the most attractive real estate assets in Portugal for institutional investors.”

Also, “indirect investment in the sector (through the purchase of units of funds specifically dedicated to the holding and management of shopping centres) is estimated to exceed €1.5 billion, almost exclusively from foreign funds.”

The average amount of direct investment allocated each year to shopping centres is 230 million euros, with foreign capital accounting for around 70%.

According to the data, Portugal ranks among the European countries with the highest density of shopping centres. The country has about 120 shopping malls totalling more than 3 million m2 of gross leasable area (GLA), resulting in a GLA of 280 square meters per 1000 inhabitants, higher than the European average of 239 m2. Just the metropolitan areas of Lisbon and Porto concentrate half of the total.  The two cities have a total of more than 1.5 million m2 of GLA, in a total of 66 shopping centres, of which 41 are in Greater Lisbon, and 25 are in Greater Porto.

The report also includes the results of the scoring model developed by Cushman & Wakefield retail professionals with the objective of evaluating the quality of shopping centres in Portugal.

Applied to all centres with a commercial area of over 10,000 m2, this model estimates the annual number of visitors, sales per m2, size of the area of influence, commercial mix and quality of the project and management, resulting in its distribution into four categories denoting overall quality.

The high attractiveness of Portugal’s centres can be seen in the reports scoring, in which 42% of the existing projects are classified as Excellent or Very Good, and only 25% (16 centres) are found in the lowest classification (Limited).

The regions of Greater Lisbon and Greater Porto have the greatest concentration of centres rated as excellent, approaching 50%.

Original Story: Construír – Cidália Lopes

Translation: Richard Turner

Aveiro: Vougainvest Group to Enlarge and Renovate the Glicínias Plaza

12 September 2017

The shopping centre Glicínias Plaza, in Aveiro, will undergo renovations and an extension, in an investment totalling 40 million euros. Two new floors will be built, the Vougainvest Group, owner of the development, announced.

In a statement, the group reveals that the project will increase the gross leasable area from 28,000 to 41,000 square meters.  The company also intends to open another 45 stores and create 500 parking spaces.

“[The city will benefit from] the natural increase in commercial supply, hundreds of new jobs, the continued of the existence of a recreational place with improved conditions, and the endowment of the surrounding region to Glicínias,” Jorge Buco, managing director of the Vougainvest Group, said.

The surrounding area of the building will also change with “the improvement of some communication routes, the creation of green spaces and the construction of a playground,” the document adds.

Construction will commence in January 2018 and is expected to last until October 2019, during which time the shopping centre will continue to operate normally.

The project’s presentation is scheduled for September 18 at the Santa Joana museum in Aveiro, with the presence of Jorge Buco, the group’s manager Daniel Lafforgue, the project’s architect, Vítor Pais, and the president of the Aveiro town council, José Ribau Esteves.

Founded in 1995, Vougainvest is a developer specialising in shopping centres. The company also owns the Foz Plaza in Figueira da Foz.

Original Story: Diário Imobiliário

Translation: Richard Turner

New Life for Traditional Portuguese Markets

 

2 September 2017

The old, traditional markets are gaining a bit of a new lease on life throughout Portugal. The latest is the historic Beira-Rio Municipal Market, on the edge of Vila Nova de Gaia.

With its inauguration scheduled for September 13 after intensive renovations, the market will open its doors with a concept that will combine modern gastronomy with the traditional sale of fresh produce.

Fachada Oceânica; a company made up of the construction company Lucios, a specialist in urban rehabilitation, and Legível Puzzle, whose partners are PEV Entertainment, a promoter of cultural events such as the Festival Marés Vivas, and Jocalu Higiene Industrial, will manage the redeveloped market. The Municipal Council of Vila Nova de Gaia granted the joint venture a 30-year concession to manage the property.

In total, the revitalised site has an area of more than 1,000 square meters, with 47 retail spaces, of which 36 are shops, and 11 are traditional stalls. The project will generate nearly 100 new jobs and an expected turnover of around 3.5 million euros.

The old tenants will be joined well-known names from the area. The gastronomic shops will have a variety of items for sale, including Portuguese snacks, sushi, suckling pig, burgers, cod, vegetarian food, AOC cheeses and sausages, and wines and sweets.

The Beira-Rio Market will also aim to provide a new area for holding cultural events such as live music, art exhibitions, poetry recitals and seasonal events, all open to the city’s inhabitants. The venue will have 178 indoor seats and 344 seats on an outdoor terrace and will be open for extended hours throughout the year.

Original Story: Diário Imobiliário

Translation: Richard Turner