Investment powerhouse QIC is moving to sell a 100% interest in Woodgrove Shopping Centre in Melbourne’s growing outer west region. Part of the offer includes a separately titled Woolworths-anchored neighbourhood shopping centre known as Coburns Central, an additional medical centre leased to Westcare, and a 3-hectare development site.
Woodgrove Shopping Centre is a dominant regional shopping centre comprising over 60,000m2 of lettable area and producing more than $500 million in tenant sales per annum. The centre is anchored by Coles, Woolworths, ALDI, Kmart, Big W, Harris Scarfe, Dan Murphy’s, Reading Cinemas and supported by some 160 specialties and kiosks.
JLL’s Sam Hatcher and Nick Willis have been exclusively appointed to handle the sale in conjunction with Lachlan MacGillivray at Colliers.
Sam Hatcher said: “Opportunities to acquire dominant regional shopping centres in core metropolitan locations are seldom formally offered to market. The sale of Woodgrove Shopping Centre will represent the second only opportunity in Melbourne to acquire a 100% interest in a regional shopping centre in the last 15 years. All other offerings have either been off-market or partial interest without management.”
Nick Willis said: “The Australian retail sector is experiencing a renaissance with global capital and increasingly investors are seeking exposure to assets that are dominant in performance and provide future value add opportunities.
“Woodgrove provides investors a unique land rich opportunity of over 27 hectares, allowing significant future development opportunities to cater for the burgeoning growth in the region. Further to this, the multi-component nature of the centre provides investors with ultimate flexibility to implement a proactive management strategy,” said Willis.
The sale of Woodgrove Shopping Centre comes as major retail landlord Scentre Group, withdrew its interest to develop a shopping centre 14km from the centre at Mount Atkinson, reinforcing Woodgrove Shopping Centre’s dominance in the region.
The City of Melton is Australia’s fourth fastest growing municipality with a growth rate of 6.61% over FY23 according to official ABS data. Further, The City of Melton Council have noted that the population is expected to expand to 440,142 persons by 2051, representing 89% growth or 2.3% per annum.
Lachlan MacGillivray said: “Strong population growth, combined with some of the lowest retail floorspace-to-population ratios globally, is driving robust asset performance and renewed investor interest in the sector. In Melbourne’s West, retail floorspace per capita is projected to drop to more than double the current national undersupplied average. A dominant asset like Woodgrove Shopping Centre presents a significant opportunity to capture a captive trade area and offers multiple options to enhance the site’s use over time. With the area’s population expected to expand rapidly, Woodgrove is poised to become the leading retail hub in Melbourne’s growing western corridor.
“Victoria is one of the most tightly held investment destinations on Australia’s Eastern seaboard for those looking to invest in major shopping centres. Since 2000, there has been only one transaction involving a regional shopping centre in the state, valued at over $350 million for a 100% ownership stake. This underscores just how rare the opportunity to acquire Woodgrove Shopping Centre truly is,” said MacGillivray.
