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I'm frequent visitor of shopping centers in Greater London, IMV apart from purely seasonal factors there's no real economy "resurgence" in terms of occupied space or footfall, funds and speculators financially may show some swings of course but it's detached from ground economy.
With the number of stores opened in the bull ring this December, that is an obvious thing.
What is odd though is the radio silence, not even a third quarter trading updating which we had back in november 2022, no post xmas update. Just complete radio silence.........
Article in Sunday Times 14/01/24 that Shopping Centres in UK are back in favour.
Good news for Hammerson?
I might remember wrongly, but don't think they gave a post xmas update last year... yes, a bit strange
We seem to be lacking any comms at all in regards to quarterly trading updates, and the potential bid.
We usually recieve some sort of trading updating in the run up to xmas...
You keep mentioning shorts. I'm not familiar really with this. What do you see happening?
Bicester sale triggers epic squeeze
Every RNS now I think its the big news we've been waiting for.
There should be Nike and Pull & Bear stores Hammerson Highcross Shopping Center in Leicester - East Midlands
Would like to see Nike and Pull & Bear shops in Highcross SC in Leicester - East Midlands
Great time to be negotiating a sale! Hopefully they pay $$$
It’s veryyyyy busy, it’s 4:15pm and the main. At park is full, so we’re on the park and ride. It looks superb!
Will keep you updated.
People are fed up with delivery men/women coming round at all hours of day and night and ringing neighbours doorbells and dropping packages like ton of bricks everywhere... How rude and antisocial!... The experience of personal shopping is unrivalled and it's coming back in all its glory
Hammerson welcomes 115,000 sq ft of new retail openings at Bullring & Grand Central
Dec 14 2023
Hammerson is pleased to announce a flurry of high-profile new openings at Bullring & Grand Central, the culmination of a transformational year for the Birmingham city centre destination.
Nike, Bershka, Pull&Bear, and M&S have opened just in time for the busiest shopping period in the calendar, alongside the famed Coca-Cola truck having arrived at the destination last weekend, underpinning Hammerson’s strategy to enliven the asset with new brands, concepts and market firsts. The series of openings introduces 115,000 sq ft of brand-new shopping experiences.
Sportswear giant Nike has launched its ‘Nike Rise’ concept store, located at the gateway to Bullring and just metres from the iconic steel ‘Bull’. Spanning 13,000 sq ft, it features innovative digital experiences and services that enliven the sport pulse of the city. Customers will be able to experience Footwear Fastlane, which shares footwear product stories, benefits, and technical information; Nike by You, enabling visitors to customise new Nike products; and a new bra and leggings destination, helping female athletes find their right fit.
Inditex’s urban fashion brands, Bershka and Pull&Bear, have also made their regional debuts at Bullring, following in the footsteps of Zara. The two stores, spread over 36,000 sq ft in total, take Inditex’s presence at Bullring to over 76,000 sq ft. Each with their own dedicated entrances, the stores bring together Bershka’s three main lines – Bershka, BSK, and Man – alongside Pull&Bear’s complete collection of menswear and womenswear.
Joining Nike, Bershka, and Pull&Bear is M&S’ new 65,000 sq ft Bullring store, offering local shoppers a fresh market-style Foodhall, as well as stylish and spacious new Clothing, Home, and Beauty departments. Following a significant investment in the city’s local economy, the new store is part of the retailer’s plans to invest c. £480 million nationally, creating over 3,400 new jobs nationwide.
As part of Bullring & Grand Central’s Christmas activations, the iconic Coca-Cola truck has returned to the destination for the first time in seven years as part of a UK-wide tour in December. The experiential-led truck complemented the season-long Après Ski Bar, which is supporting the wider placemaking ambitions and vision, enlivening both indoor and outdoor space with new concepts and events that engage and excite customers.
Toby Tait, Director of Asset Management at Hammerson, commented: “We always knew that 2023 was going to be a transformational year for Bullring & Grand Central. In the last three months alone, we’ve had 12 major brands open their doors, as we enliven the destination by introducing new entertainment and leisure concepts, high-profile brands and market firsts.
The strength of the new openings this year including Nike, M&S, Bershka and Pull&Bear reinf
Responded nicely, just as all in the sector have.
Dividend would be awesome
Dividend
Might see some risk on emerging with markets. I expect nothing other than the BoE to mirror the Fed.
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/12/13/fed-interest-rate-decision-december-2023.html
I doubt they'll splash on new shopping centres. They'll likely use it to resolve existing debt, and reinvest in their core projects.
Share buyback would be a good option.
If the sale goes through what do you think they’ll with the £1 billion? Buy more shopping centres? Or could they do a share buyback? What’s everyone thinking
Good find Bubbleshoot and we now have the identity of who is behind the conversations for Value Retail.
LVMH and Bernard Arnault can afford it irrespective of whether its £1.0Billion or £1.2Billion and its the villages are good staging posts for his high end fashion brands.
I hope HMSO do hold out for the higher of the two valuations and the New York village is taking shape nicely on the webcam.
https://www.valueretail.com/value-retail/en/villages/belmont-park-village
Don’t give in price manipulation, hold the line!
No update, but an article from https ://www.bisnow.com/london/news/retail/lvmh-and-arnault-backed-investor-eye-stake-in-bicester-village-owner-121963
A private equity firm backed by LVMH and the family office of its founder is in conversations about buying a stake in the company that owns Bicester Village.
L Catterton has held talks with Hammerson, which is selling a 40% stake in Value Retail for £1B to £1.2B, React News reported.
There is no certainty of a deal being done, and talks have been on and off, with L Catterton offering less than the £1.2B Hammerson is looking for, according to React.
Any deal would see an investor backed by one of the world’s biggest luxury retail owners take a stake in a business that has built its fortune on discounted high-end fashion sales, with a strong focus on tourist shoppers. The family office of LVMH founder Bernard Arnault is also a backer of L Catterton.
Bicester Village in Oxfordshire is focused on upscale and luxury retail and is often cited as achieving the highest sales per SF of any retail scheme internationally. Retailers have tended not to open other designer outlet stores in the south of England.
The 245K SF outlet centre 65 miles north-west of London is estimated to be visited by up to 80% of the roughly 350,000 Chinese visitors to the UK every year. The platform at Marylebone station, from which trains to the nearest town depart, has signs and announcements in Mandarin, and Bicester Village employs about 150 Mandarin speakers.
It receives 7 million visits annually, attracting shoppers from Middle Eastern royals to the average bargain hunter.
Value Retail also has locations in Shanghai and Suzhou in China that are branded under the Bicester Village name. It also has centres in cities like Barcelona, Frankfurt, Madrid and Milan.
Belmont Park Village in New York is scheduled to open next summer.
Hammerson upped its stake in Value Retail in February 2018 with a £76M investment as it focused on growing its premium outlet business, but earlier this year, CEO Rita-Rose Gagné said that investment was no longer envisaged as a long-term hold.
Value Retail’s other shareholders include founder Scott Malkin, U.S. retail giant Simon Property Group and Dutch pension fund APG, none of whom are bidding for Hammerson’s stake, React reported.
That’s so bullish