The La Vie Funchal shopping center, in Portugal, has changed hands, and is now part of the portfolio of the open real estate investment fund CA Património Crescente, managed by Square Asset Management. It was purchased from CentroNovoFunchal S.A., which is 50% owned by the HLP fund, of which ECS Capital is the management company, and 40% by the Oitante Group, together with other minority shareholders.
In this transaction, CBRE represented the seller of the property, also advised by Uria Menéndez - Proença de Carvalho and NewCycle. Square was supported by RPE and Engexpor.
José Hermozilha, Head of Investment Properties at CBRE, commented in a statement: «we are very pleased to have successfully completed the sale of Centro Comercial La Vie Funchal, which is one of the most emblematic shopping centers sold in Portugal in recent years. La Vie is clearly the leading shopping center in Funchal and an excellent example of how a well-managed, strategically located and performing retail asset continues to capture the interest of institutional investors», he adds.
La Vie Funchal is the main shopping center on the island of Madeira. It has a total area of 16,000 square meters, spread over 68 stores, with brands such as Cortefiel, Springfield, Massimo Dutti and Tiffosi and is anchored by a Pingo Doce hypermarket and Worten. It also has a range of restaurants and a gym, as well as 860 parking spaces.
Currently, it has 100% occupancy rate, and registers a footfall of about 10 million visitors every year, benefiting from the dynamism of the tourist market, on this island that receives 1.7 million tourists by plane and 250 cruises annually.
Square Asset Management is today the largest Independent Real Estate Fund Management Company in Portugal, with more than 1.8 billion assets under management, on behalf of private and institutional investors. Square has been one of the most active buyers in the retail sector in Portugal over the last five years, with the acquisition of several landmark shopping centers since 2017: Albufeira Terrace and C.C.C. Portimão (2017), CoimbraShopping (2018), a portfolio of four shopping centers in Portugal (2019), Fórum Viseu and Fórum Castelo Branco (1st quarter of 2020), and several retail park acquisitions.
