More than £400 million worth of property will be offload by Hammerson as the company looks to generate more capital for their construction on two massive new shopping centers in London.
The developments planned will located in Croydon, which the company is working together with Westfield and Brent Cross.
Furthermore, a site in the Square Mile in London is another development the company is waiting to confirm. The plans are currently altered due to the Greater London Authority not giving them approval last year.
David Atkins, Hammerson’s chief executive, said, even with the current economic uncertainty, with the company’s high end shopping centre portfolio and by remaining the shop vacancy rate low at less than 3 per cent, it had been able to attract retailer businesses. As a result, the company’s income from rents increased by 8.8 per cent to £346.5 million between 2015 and 2016.
Hammerson also emphasized that their future strategy of focusing on development rather than new property acquisition to add to their existing portfolio.
On the project completion, the new shopping malls would add to Hammerson’s growing portfolio, which include Birmingham’s the Bullring and Cabot Circus in Bristol to name a few.