Corio acquires shopping centre Saint-Jacques in Metz

Corio acquired 75.8% of the Saint-Jacques shopping centre located in Metz in France for € 96.4 m at a net initial yield of 6.6%. The total shopping centre comprises 21,000 m2 Gross Leasable Area (GLA) and 1,200 parking units. With this acquisition Corio acquired 15,762 m2 of the total GLA and all 1,200 parking units. The remainder is owned by private co-owners. The acquisition will contribute to Corio's direct result as of 27 June 2011. The acquisition of the Saint-Jacques shopping centre, located in the shopping heart of Metz, fits with Corio's strategy, which focuses on dominant shopping centres, well located in city centres with steady financial performance and upside potential.

Metz is located in the north eastern part of France, at approximately 300 km of Paris, 60 km of Luxembourg and 50 km of Germany. Metz is the administrative capital of the Lorraine region. The catchment area (within 30 minutes drive) comprises around 480,000 persons. The surrounding area of the centre is a dense urban environment of residential and offices.

Opened in 1976, the Saint-Jacques shopping centre is directly connected to Rue Serpenoise, the main retail street of Metz, it benefits from 9 entrances that are directly connected to main shopping streets in Metz. The complex is currently anchored by FNAC and Simply Market (the supermarket formula of Group Auchan). It offers in total 105 different shops over 3 floors. Saint-Jacques tenant mix is composed of shops (11,473 m2), Medium Sized Units (2,700 m2) and Large Sized Units (6,827 m2). The current financial vacancy rate is 3.8%, that will be covered by a 6 to 12 months rental guarantee depending on each unit. As a result of its perfect location and attractive commercial offer, Saint Jacques attracts 13 million visitors per year.

Competition is mainly positioned outside the city and consists of periphery shopping centres anchored by a hypermarket and a small (17 shops) to medium size (62 shops) gallery plus big boxes areas. Also a factory outlet centre Marques Avenue is located to the North of the city. Corio expects that with its hands-on management it can enhance the performance of the centre by transforming it into a Favourite Meeting Place.

For more information you can go to: www.centre-saint-jacques.com