Outlet centre operator McArthurGlen announced that it has taken over the management and leasing of the B5 Outlet Centre at Brandenburg, near Berlin, Germany.
The move is a two-fold first for McArthurGlen: It is the companys first foray into the designer outlet market in Germany and it marks the first time McArthurGlen has taken over a third party management contract on an existing centre.
McArthurGlen enters Germany at Berlin with the established B5 Outlet Centre, which opened in 2000, in a catchment area of more than 4 million people within a 60 minute drive and over 5 million tourists visiting the area each year.
The B5 Outlet Centre currently has 40 stores across 17,000 m2 GLA. Brands include Tommy Hilfiger, Mexx, Benetton, Mango and Nike. It was recently acquired from Hammerson by Henderson Global Investors for its European Outlet Mall Fund, which has an approximate value of 550 million.
Julia Calabrese, CEO of McArthurGlen, said, "Germany holds much allure for us. We plan to further expand our business in Germany the country is under-resourced in terms of the availability of quality designer outlet retail opportunities and statistics show resurgence in consumer confidence."
"We are currently looking for potential development sites, particularly in the area surrounding Hamburg, as well as evaluating the potential of other third party management opportunities across Europe," Julia added.
The B5 Outlet Centre increases the McArthurGlen portfolio to 15 properties across Europe and comes on the heels of the most recent opening in March of the Barberino Designer Outlet, near Florence.
McArthurGlen is Europe s leading designer outlet developer, owner and operator. It currently has 14 Designer Outlets across the UK, France, Austria, the Netherlands and Italy, and more are in development.
