The French fund Inter Gestion REIM has made its first investment in Ireland’s commercial property market, paying in excess of €26 million for B&Q’s flagship store at Liffey Valley in Dublin. The fund, an independent family-owned portfolio management company, is understood to have secured ownership of the property from its owners, Aviva and Iput, in the face of competing bids from several other parties. With B&Q currently paying a rent of €2.02 million per annum, Inter Gestion stands to secure a net initial yield of about 7 per cent after standard purchasers’ costs of 9.96 per cent.
Located on a standalone 9.26-acre site immediately adjacent to Liffey Valley Retail Park and with direct access on to the M50 motorway, the subject property extends to 119,213sq ft (11,075sq m) with an ancillary garden centre of approximately 29,000sq ft (2,694sq m), as well as builder’s stores and a service yard. The unit also benefits from a large surface car park comprising 552 spaces. The store’s scale is especially significant given the restriction under current planning guidelines on the development of large-scale single retail warehouse units in excess of 64,583sq ft (6,000sq m). This places substantial limitations on the future development of competing retail warehouse units of this size within the Dublin market.
The property is single let to B&Q PLC on a 25-year upwards-only, full repairing and insuring (FRI) lease from March 27th, 2002. B&Q currently pay a rent of €2.02 million per annum (€18.80 per sq ft). Given the sheer strength of demand for DIY and homebuilding supplies within the Irish market, B&Q is expected to renew its lease in Liffey Valley once its current agreement expires in 2027.
Established in 1990, Inter Gestion REIM specialises in the creation and management of SCPIs (Société Civile de Placement Immobilier). An SCPI is a collective real estate investment vehicle that allows investors to invest in real estate without the constraints of rental management and direct ownership. Inter Gestion REIM currently markets two SCPIs and manages assets of more than €850 million.
Inter Gestion REIM was advised on its purchase of B&Q’s Liffey Valley outlet by BNP Paribas Real Estate Ireland while Aviva and Iput were represented in the transaction by joint agents JLL and Savills. Outside of its entry to the Irish market, the fund recently completed its first transaction in the Spanish market, paying €42.5 million for eight supermarkets owned by the French-headquartered supermarket giant Carrefour.
The Liffey Valley retail complex has long been recognised as one of Dublin’s foremost retail destinations thanks to its location at the interchange of the M50 motorway (junction 7) and the N4 national primary route. The scheme is easily accessed by car and by a number of bus companies, including Dublin Bus which operates 16 routes to and from the city centre. Accessibility has also been improved with the recent development of a new six-bay bus plaza. The plaza is set to facilitate a 75 per cent increase in bus services to and from the shopping centre and its surrounds.
