Dentons advises on portfolio transaction in the Polish retail market

Dentons has advised the Hungarian Shopper Park Plus on the acquisition of a portfolio of eight food anchored retail parks in Poland from Auchan Polska and Ceetrus Polska. The transaction was structured as a sale and leaseback, So the French chain remained the anchor tenant and continue its retail operations for 15 years with a guaranteed option to extend this period (3x5 years).

The purchased portfolio comprises eight large-format retail schemes, with a total area of 208,000 sq m. of GLA, located in Białystok, Częstochowa, Gliwice, Legnica, Łomianki, Kołbaskowo, Sosnowiec and Wałbrzych. With the transaction, Shopper Park Plus acquired the rights to all retail parks, including the existing lease agreements and commercial infrastructure. This allows for the continuity of operations at all locations.

For Shopper Park Plus, the acquisition of Polish retail parks is another step in building a strong position in Central and Eastern Europe. The company through its subsidiaries, manages a total gross leasable area (GLA) of more than 600,000 sq m in Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia.

The transaction was led by partner Monika Sitowicz and managing counsel Łukasz Zwiercan with the support of associates Julia Bujkowska and Julia Sikorska from the Real Estate team in Warsaw. Senior associate Rafał Baranowski and associate Krzysztof Chlebowski from the Banking and Finance team were responsible for the financing documentation.

Legal advice in competition law was provided by partner Agnieszka Stefanowicz-Barańska and counsel Maciej Marek.

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