Le mie ricette per la real estate communityBMO Real Estate Partners (BMO REP), the pan-European property investment and asset management specialist that is part of Canada’s BMO Financial Group’s €228 billion[1] Global Asset Management business, announces that it has now secured €250 million in equity commitments for Best Value Europe II (“BVE II” or the “Fund”). The open-ended fund has a target equity of €600 million and €1 billion in GAV, with the eight investments to date delivering a portfolio GAV totalling €233 million.
Like its predecessor, BVE II focuses on selective, high quality, prime high street retail properties within top tier or dominant European cities that benefit from strong tourism, high footfall and deep international retailer markets. Through the acquisition of luxury, mass-market, premium and restaurant assets, and additional portfolio diversification by geography, the Fund is already distributing 4% per annum.
The most recent investments in Paris, acquired for a total of €36 million, are 42 Rue des Francs-Bourgeois, which is leased to Calvin Klein, and 1 Rue de la Michodiere, a restaurant acquired from French actor Gerard Depardieu, where a new 10-year lease has been agreed with the prestigious Moma Group who will launch a new fine dining concept in the premises. The Fund has a further €100 million of properties in exclusivity and set to complete before the end of the year, including in Milan, Copenhagen and Madrid, with a significant future pipeline of investments under consideration.
Ian Kelley, Fund Director Europe at BMO Real Estate Partners said: “We are continuing to see strong occupier demand for prime retail locations in top cities, which benefit from above average economic growth, strong tourism levels and affluent footfall. As a result, there remains positive rental growth within this specific pocket of the retail property market, where physical stores are used by strong brands as an integral part of their omni-channel model.
“We have delivered a circa 15% NAV increase since BVE II’s inception and, with an exciting pipeline of potential investments in place, we look forward to announcing a number of new acquisitions before the end of the year as we continue to grow the portfolio.”
Best Value Europe II – eight investments to date:
| Occupier | Location |
| Coin Excelsior | Via Cappello 30, Verona, Italy |
| Primor | Calle Orense 16, Madrid, Spain |
| Michael Kors | Avenida da Liberdade 108, Lisbon, Portugal |
| Huawei Flagship | Plaça Catalunya 9, Barcelona, Spain |
| Future Luxury | 1, Boulevard de Croisette, Cannes, France |
| C&A | Wenceslas Square, 3, Prague, Czech Republic |
| Calvin Klein Flagship | 42, rue des Francs-Bourgeois, Paris, France |
| La Fontaine Gaillon | 1, Rue de la Michodiere, Paris, France |
[1] as at 31.03.2019 and includes both discretionary and non-discretionary assets
[2] Assets Under Management (AUM) reported is as at 31.03.2019 and includes both discretionary and non-discretionary assets.
Source : Company