Herald makes €30 million retail warehouse park acquisition in Giessen

Henderson Global Investors’ €900 million pan-European retail property fund, Herald has acquired the Real Hypermarket & Gallery, a retail warehouse park in Giessen, Germany for approximately €30 million from the Metro Group, reflecting a yield of around 8%. The 17,996 sq m (193,700 sq ft) property is fully let to 16 tenants and is anchored by a Real Hypermarket and Saturn, a major German specialist electrical retailer. The recently refurbished asset is situated close to major highways near Frankfurt, the largest city in the state of Hesse and Germany’s financial capital. Herald’s primary focus is on acquiring prime retail assets across France, Germany and Italy, and this acquisition follows the recent €64.4 million purchase of Centre Sud Shopping Centre, Le Mans, France in December 2009. The fund expects to acquire additional assets over 2010, with an emphasis on prime, dominant assets in its core markets.