Commercial Premises on Calle Serrano & Paseo de Gracia are More Expensive Than Ever

28 March 2019 – Expansión

The “golden miles” of Madrid and Barcelona seem to be immune to the consumer crisis and the boom in e-commerce that is negatively affecting other high streets across the country, for the time being at least. In fact, business is booming on Calle Serrano and Paseo de Gracia, driven by demand from large international luxury brands, which are only willing to open their flagship stores on those two streets.

Recent arrivals on Calle Serrano include Salvatore Ferragamo, Bottega Veneta, Saint Laurent and Bang & Olufsen. Meanwhile, the newest tenants on Paseo de Gracia include Moncler, Loro Piana (LVWH), Isabel Marant, Antropologie and Christian Louboutin.

Moreover, demand is driving up rents on those streets. In Barcelona, prices on the golden mile rose by between 5% and 6% in 2018, to €275/m2/month, according to Ascana. In Madrid, the price increase was less marked, up by just 1%, but nevertheless, the average price amounted to €284/m2/month, a new historical record.

Original story: Expansión (by Marisa Anglés)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

VIA Outlets to Invest €13M+ in Expansion of Sevilla Fashion Outlet

6 June 2018 – Eje Prime

VIA Outlets wants to open a large showcase of luxury stores on the site of a former industrial estate in Sevilla. A year and a half after purchasing the Sevilla The Style Outlets shopping centre from the fund Irus European Retail Property, the company has announced that it is going to invest more than €13 million in the remodelling and expansion of the facilities, located near to Sevilla airport.

The construction work will begin in September, during a year in which VIA Outlets forecasts growth of 5% for Sevilla Fashion Outlets, its current name, and a “considerable” increase in international clientele, as indicated by the company.

VIA Outlets is a joint venture formed by Value Retail, the British firm Reit Hammerson, the Dutch pension fund APG and the European real estate investment manager Meyer Bergman. In its Andalucían asset, the company has luxury fashion clients such as Polo Ralph Lauren, Lacoste, Coach, Tous, Bimba y Lola, Scalpers and Hugo Boss, amongst others.

The aim of the manager is that, with the more than 15,000 m2 of recently acquired land, the outlet will become the largest smart shopping centre in the south of Spain.

More international clientele 

In addition to its growth forecasts, the joint venture is also aiming to attract more tourists to the facilities with the expansion. “The proximity of Sevilla Fashion Outlet to the airport and the good connections with the urban nucleus of a booming tourist destination such as Sevilla makes the centre a great attraction for international clientele”, said Ignacio Lobarón, Managing Director of the centre.

Currently, VIA Outlet’s portfolio comprises eleven centres located in nine European countries, including four on the Iberian peninsula (in Sevilla, Mallorca, Lisbon and Porto). Moreover, the group owns commercial spaces in Germany, The Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Switzerland, Norway and Poland.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

McArthurGlen to Open 5 Luxury Outlet Centres in Spain

3 January 2018 – Cinco Días

The largest retail asset real estate firm in the world has set its sights on Spain. Simon Property Group will operate through its subsidiary in Europe, called McArthurGlen, in which it holds a 50% stake. This European firm, which specialises in luxury brand and premium outlets, plans to open five such centres in the country, according to José Luis Arenas, Director of Development at McArthurGlen in Spain, speaking to Cinco Días. In total, it plans to invest €750 million, with an average investment of €150 million per site.

McArthurGlen’s first project is already under development. It involves an outlet for luxury brands, which is being built as an extension of the Plaza Mayor shopping centre in Málaga. The firm will invest €140 million in the initiative, together with its partner Sonae Sierra, and its doors are due to open at the end of 2018 (…).

According to Arenas, “We are looking for more short-term opportunities in the north and east of Spain and we will end up entering both Madrid and Barcelona over the medium term” (…).

McArthurGlen is a company headquartered in London and founded in 1993 by the American Joey Kampfer. It is a large developer of designer outlets, given that it owns 24 centres in 8 European countries as well as in Canada, which house 3,000 stores for 1,000 brands in total. Simon Property, as the owner of 50% of the share capital, provides it with an enormous investment capacity. Meanwhile, that US real estate company, under the legal structure of a REIT or Socimi, owns 216 shopping centres around the world and has a market capitalisation of $54.95 billion (€45.7 billion), making it the largest real estate company on the planet (…).

McArthurGlen has joined forces with Sonae Sierra for this first project in Málaga, but has not ruled out teaming up with other property developers in the future. (…). Sonae Sierra is, in turn, a joint venture, between the Portuguese holding company Sonae and the British firm Grosvenor – belonging to Hugh Grosvenor, the Duke of Westminster -. Sonae Sierra owns 76 shopping centres in 14 countries (…).

In terms of the Andalucían outlet, Arenas has set the objective of having between 2 and 3 million visitors per year. “Plaza Mayor by itself already receives more than 10 million people per year and we are going to benefit from those consumers and increase the numbers with new clients. We will also attract tourists”.

Original story: Cinco Días (by Alfonso Simón Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Centro Canalejas’ Luxury Apartments Will Be Sold For c. €13,000/m2

4 November 2017 – Expansión

Centro Canalejas, located just a stone’s throw from Puerta del Sol, in the heart of Madrid, will open its doors at the beginning of 2019. It will house the first hotel to be operated by the Canadian luxury chain Four Seasons in Spain, as well as high-end homes, which will be sold for an average price of €13,000/m2. Moreover, it will include a shopping arcade on the lower floors and a 400-space parking lot.

The complex, promoted by OHL Desarrollos, Grupo Villar Mir and Mohari Limited – a company controlled by the Israeli businessman Mark Scheinberg– will unify seven historical buildings, some of which were constructed at the beginning of the nineteenth century, into a single unit, involving an investment of €525 million.

A luxury hotel operated by Four Seasons will occupy the majority of the space in the centre. Specifically, the hotel will have 200 rooms, whose surface areas will range from 45 m2 to 400 m2. They will occupy the entirety of the second, third, fourth and fifth floors, although the hotel will have a presence throughout the whole building. It will have 4,200 m2 of common areas as well as a spa, banquet halls and meeting rooms, one of which will have capacity for 600 people. Moreover, it will have two restaurants, one on the first floor, measuring 400 m2, and another on the seventh floor, measuring 425 m2.

Exclusive homes

The complex will also contain 22 exclusive homes with surface areas of between 150 m2 and 700 m2 for one of the penthouses, which will include a 350 m2 terrace. The homes, which will be located on the upper floors of the building, will be sold for an average price of €13,000 /m2.

“We have not started to market them yet. We obtained the definitive licence in July and we expect to start work in November, but several interested parties have already approached us”, explained Francisco J. Meliá, CEO of Centro Canalejas Madrid and Director General at OHL Desarrollos, the company responsible for developing the project.

Flagship development

Moreover, the centre will have a shopping arcade, measuring 15,000 m2, spread over three floors. The retail space will house luxury fashion and accessories brands, as well as gastronomic offerings.

The property developers and those responsible for the development have highlighted the architectural challenges involved in adapting the buildings to their new uses whilst respecting their heritage value and they underlined that more than €7 million has been invested in the conservation of 16,700 pieces.

“Centro Canalejas is going to be a flagship development in Madrid and not only because of its ocean liner shape”, explained the architect Carlos Lamela, Director of Estudio Lamela and author of this architectural project.

Original story: Expansión (by Artur Zanón and Rebeca Arroyo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Luxury Brands Conquer Madrid’s Golden Mile

17 October 2017 – Expansión

Fashion labels such as Sonia Rykiel, Oliver Peoples, Tesla and Audemars Piguet are arriving on the main shopping streets of the Madrilenian neighbourhood of Salamanca, with their first stores in the Spanish market.

The Spanish real estate market is enjoying good times, with investors interested in buying assets and commitments from all kinds of brands to open stores on the country’s main shopping thoroughfares. This interest is very apparent in the Madrilenian neighbourhood of Salamanca, the capital’s luxury shopping area, with the arrival of numerous new brands, such as the car firm Tesla (…).

The exclusive brand behind the 100% electric cars has taken over a store on Calle Serrano in Madrid, just a stone’s throw from Puerta de Alcalá, as Expansión revealed on 2 September. Specifically, Tesla has leased a 275 m2 store, at number 3 on the famous street along the Golden Mile (…).

“The Golden Mile in Madrid is a sought-after area for the majority of the luxury brands that decide to move to the capital. This means that sections  (of the street) that were less appealing until now, such as the uneven side of the road and the bottom section of the street, no longer have as much availability as they used to in previous years. Examples of this are the case of Tesla at number 3, and Malababa at number 8”, explain sources at the consultancy firm Ascana.

Tesla and Malababa are joining Kenzo and Audemars Piguet, the latest luxury brands to open stores on the famous Madrilenian thoroughfare (…).

Other sought-after streets

The commitment to the luxury market does not end on Calle Serrano (…). Adjoining streets, such as Calles Ortega y Gasset, Lagasca and Claudio Coello are also welcoming new international brands. “The interior of the Salamanca neighbourhood has seen the departure of traditional businesses, which cannot afford the current rental prices, and their replacement by premium brands. Not all of the brands can afford to pay for a store on the best stretch of Serrano; such premises are only available to 10% of firms”, says Ignacio Acha, Associate Director of Retail & High Street at Cushman & Wakefield.

“Claudio Coello is continuing to consolidate its position as one of the main thoroughfares in the Salamanca neighbourhood. Several brands are planning to open stores on that street, such as Sonia Rykiel, at number 79, Max Mara Weekend at number 63 and Pedro Miralles, at number 58″, say Ascana’s sources (…).

For brands like that, a store on Serrano or Ortega y Gasset is very expensive. The difference in price between the best store on those streets and on Claudio Coello could be up to three times”, says the Partner at C&W, the consultancy firm that has advised Sonia Rykiel on its operation.

In addition to the upcoming store openings on Claudio Coello, Ortega y Gasset has been selected as the location of choice by another international brand for its debut in Spain. Specifically, the glasses firm Oliver Peoples, owned by the luxury Luxottica group, has taken over the premises on c/Ortega y Gasset, 4, where it will open its first store in the country.

Original story: Expansión (by Rocío Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Ingria Investment Sells Commercial Premises On c/Serrano To AEW

2 February 2016 – Mislocales.es

Cushman & Wakefield has advised the investor group in the sale of the property, located at number 7, Calle Serrano in Madrid.

Ingria Investment, an investment fund mainly constituted by Rockspring, has sold a commercial premises to the German company AEW Europe in the heart of Salamanca district of Madrid, precisely in Calle de Serrano, No. 7. The space is part of a building being fully restored, whose works are planned to be finished by the first quarter of 2017.

The commercial premises has a total of 750 m² distributed over two floors, one at street level and one on the first floor. It features a clear area, plus large shop windows and eight balconies, which allow plenty of natural light.

Marc Langenbach, Fund Manager of AEW Europe commented: “As the first investment fund in Spain, this operation is a welcome addition to our portfolio. Our intention is to rent the place to an international retailer during the construction period and we have already detected a strong interest. During the coming months we will continue expanding our portfolio in the main streets of the major cities in Europe”.

According to Beatriz Lopez Cid, Retail Associate in Cushman & Wakefield Spain, “the premium brands are increasingly moving to the Puerta de Alcalá, due to the limited availability of premises. This requires for buildings to be remodeled and adapted to new needs. The closing of this transaction confirms the confidence of investors in HS assets  in Spain, and  indeed, the premises purchased by AEW Europe go in this direction. “

Calle Serrano is considered the most emblematic of the Spanish capital, located in the famous Golden Mile of Madrid, and hosts luxury brands like Prada, Cartier, Louis Vuitton, Versace, and Adolfo Dominguez, among others.

Original story: Mislocales.es

Translation: Aura Ree

Luxury Brands Compete For Space On Spain’s Golden Miles

19 November 2015 – Expansión

The war between the major brands for shops on the golden miles of Madrid and Barcelona is intensifying and it is becoming increasingly difficult to secure premises on these streets, where rents cost more than €230/m2/month.

Calle Serrano and Paseo de Gràcia have become the exclusive territory of the large fashion houses. In recent years, big names in fashion, accessories and jewellery have been taking over the best premises on the golden miles of Madrid and Barcelona and in 2015, boosted by the economic recovery, they have completely taken over these shopping streets, where average rents now cost €230/m2/month.

This year, more than half of the operations recorded in the commercial districts of Madrid and Barcelona have involved fashion houses and jewellery firms. Eleven operations have been completed on Madrid’s golden mile, compared with fifteen in Barcelona, which has welcomed 12 new brands to the city, according to the latest report by Ascana.

Polarisation

“Desirable streets are getting increasingly better, whilst the worst streets are still suffering from the crisis”, says the founding partner of Ascana, Eduardo Rivero. The growth in tourism and the beginning of the recovery for local consumers has spurred on the large brands to position themselves in the best locations.

According to Rivero, the arrival of Prada, Louis Vuitton and Versace, and the expansion of Gucci, on Calle Serrano, is enticing the other luxury brands to follow suit. “We are talking about more affordable luxury” says the consultant – “the high-end luxury firms, such as Chanel and Hermés, are staying put on Calle Ortega y Gasset”.

Increasingly, the Paseo de Grácia is being split into three sections: luxury brands at the top (of the street), mid-range brands in the middle section and more affordable brands at the bottom end (closest to Plaza Cataluña).

Original story: Expansión (by Marisa Anglés)

Translation: Carmel Drake