Blackstone and Multi Acquire Factory Outlet Center and Operator in Italy
Multi Corporation and Blackstone Real Estate Partners Europe IV have acquired Palmanova Outlet Village, a factory outlet center of approximately 237,000 square feet located in northern Italy, between Trieste and Venice.
By Adriana Pop, Associate Editor
Venice, Italy—Multi Corporation and Blackstone Real Estate Partners Europe IV have acquired Palmanova Outlet Village, a factory outlet center of approximately 237,000 square feet (22,000 square meters) located in northern Italy, between Trieste and Venice.
Open since 2008, the property currently hosts over 90 retailers, including Calvin Klein, Nike, Adidas, Guess and Tommy Hilfiger, and generates around 3 million customer visits per year.
According to Paolo Bottelli, chairman of Multi Italy, this transaction strengthens Multi’s position as a leading owner of factory outlet centers in Italy.
Cushman & Wakefield advised Blackstone in the acquisition, which brings the company’s portfolio of upmarket factory outlet centers in Italy to five. The other properties are Franciacorta Outlet Village, Mantova Outlet Village, Puglia Outlet Village and Valdichiana Outlet Village.
Blackstone’s portfolio, which totals more than 1.6 million square feet (150,000 square meters) of space, comprises 650 shops. It welcomes 15 million visitors per year and records annual sales of more than $450 million (€400 million).
Multi also announced the acquisition of Added Value Management Srl (AVM), an Italian company specializing in the management of outlet centers. AVM was founded in 2009 and served as the external manager of Blackstone owned outlet centers.
The new subsidiary will be rebranded as Multi Outlet Management Italy and will continue to be managed by Dario Pistone, AVM’s former director. It will become Multi’s specialized outlet center team, focused on creating value across Blackstone’s factory outlet portfolio across Italy.
Multi now owns 12 centers in Italy, including shopping centers, neighborhood retail centers, and factory outlets. These assets generate more than $1 billion (€960 million) of retail sales and almost 45 million customer visits on an annual basis.
Photo credits: Multi Corporation