This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies Find out more about how Grosvenor uses cookies.

Disclaimer

This website contains general information about Grosvenor and related entities and is intended for informational purposes only. The information contained on this website is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase interests in any fund managed by Grosvenor, nor does it constitute investment advice. The information contained herein is a summary only, is not complete, and does not include certain material information about funds managed by Grosvenor, including potential conflicts of interest and risks associated with an investment with Grosvenor. No representation, warranty or undertaking, express or implied, is given as to the accuracy or completeness of the information or opinions contained in the enclosed materials by Grosvenor or its related entities, and no liability is accepted by such persons for the accuracy or completeness of any such information or opinions. The estimates, strategies, and views expressed herein are based upon past or current market conditions and/or data and information provided by unaffiliated third parties (which has not been independently verified) and is subject to change without notice. An investment with Grosvenor is speculative and contains significant risks, including the risk of loss of some or all of an investment, and is intended only for sophisticated investors who meet certain eligibility criteria. “This website is managed by Grosvenor Investment Management Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”). The funds defined as “Unregulated Collective Investment Schemes” (“UCIS”) and the promotion of a UCIS either within the UK or from the UK is severely restricted by statute. Consequently, this document is only made available to professional clients and eligible counterparties as defined by the FCA and also to persons of a kind to whom the Fund may lawfully be promoted by an authorised person by virtue of Section 238(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Exemption) Order 2001 and COBS 4.12.1R. The value of your investment may go down as well as up, and you may not receive upon redemption the full amount of your original investment. Participation in the Fund(s) should only be made by persons with experience of participating in unregulated schemes and any other person who receives this document should not rely upon it.” PAST PERFORMANCE IS NOT INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS. YOU SHOULD CONSULT WITH YOUR LEGAL, TAX, FINANCIAL, AND OTHER ADVISORS PRIOR TO MAKING AN INVESTMENT WITH GROSVENOR.

YOU ARE HERE: Home / Proprietary Assets / Indirect

Print page

The Grosvenor portfolio presents our funds, our proprietary assets, assets we hold through joint ventures or Sonae Sierra, and assets held in funds.
Choose Business

Choose a Region Choose a Country Choose a City

Choose a Sector

View our portfolio results:

Press release: Grosvenor increases revenue profit for 2012 - Grosvenor's latest Annual Report & Accounts and Environment Review.

Global Outlook - Opportunities still abound in US multi-family

Indirect

Grosvenor invests indirectly in property in two ways. We currently have co-investments in 23 investments vehicles managed by Grosvenor Fund Management - five in the UK, four in the US, six in Continental Europe, six in Asia Pacific and two international funds. We also have indirect investments in property, managed by third parties. Our largest indirect investment is our shareholding in Sonae Sierra, a shopping centre specialist whose sector focus and geographical reach complements our own. We first invested in Sonae Sierra in 1996 and since then have twice increased that holding: we now control 50% of the company.

Our indirect portfolio is managed centrally by a small team in the Grosvenor Holding Company, led by Chris Taite, Group Investment Director, based in our London office.

BUSINESS OBJECTIVES

The Group's objective, through indirect investments in property, is to diversify its property portfolio further and achieve strong risk-adjusted returns by exposure to sectors, countries, investment types and management teams which its direct property investments do not provide. We achieve this by investing in funds, clubs and other investment vehicles run by Grosvenor Fund Management, and by investing with specialist third-parties.

INVESTING THROUGH GROSVENOR FUND MANAGEMENT

We took the important strategic decision to establish a separate investment vehicle for global real estate equities. This global real estate equity fund commenced trading in October 2012 and has made a very promising start.

We also made a strategic investment in a new Swedish shopping centre with the existing investors in the Grosvenor European Retail Partnership; a committment to invest in core real estate in the USA; and are looking forward to the possibilities offered by Grosvenor Fund Management's joing venture with Harvest Fund Management for funds in Greater China.

In total these fund and club investments amount to £286m of equity which delivered a total return of 1.0% in 2012, reflecting the difficult investment conditions in UK retail markets on the one hand, compensated by strong returns in our office investments on the other.

The Group is also a client of Grosvenor Fund Management in respect of separate accounts totalling £187m of equity for assets in Australia and in Continental Europe. The Australian investments are by far the largest part of this portfolio, and delivered a total retun of 15.3% in 2012.

INVESTING THROUGH SONAE SIERRA

Our investment in this very experienced retail developer and manger remains an important contributor to our overall diversification strategy. Given the high quality and dominance of the shopping centres in its portfolio in Continental Europe, we believe it will continue to perform relatively well despite the ongoing challenges in the consumer economies of these countries, while its exposure in Brazil is becoming increasingly important.

Sonae Sierra performed well given the travails of the economy in its heartland of southern Europe. Occupancy held up and revenue profits before trading losses remained at 2011 levels. Returns were impacted, however, by valuation falls and trading provisions, resulting in a total return for the year of 0.5%. It opened its two new shopping centres - in Italy (Le Terrazze in La Spezia in March, a 50/50 joint venture with ING Real Estate) and Brazil (Uberlandia Shopping). It delivered strong growth in management services to third-parties - with 27 new contracts including seven instructions in Algeria for the first time, through Sierra Cevital, jointly-owned with an Algerian group, and nine further instructions in Morocco, for the new EMEA Sierra Services division. It also continued its policy of recycling capital, with four sales during the year (Shopping Penha, Tivoli Shopping and Patio Brasil Shopping in Brazil, and Munster Arkaden in Germany) and three projects now at advanced stages of construction (Boulevard Londrina Shopping and Passeio das Aguas in Brazil and Hofgarten Solingen in Germany).

NEW INVESTMENTS IN PROPERTY OR PROPERTY-RELATED COMPANIES

In April 2012 we made our first new investment in a third-party manager with the creation of io Investment LLP, managed by io Asset Management, which is buying multi-tenanted industrial estates and small business parks throughout the UK. It has an initial £35m to invest and at year end it had already made three investments totalling £9.7m.

In Novemeber we complemented this with an investment in a third party US east coast industrial and logistics fund, High Street Realty Fund IV. This fund focuses on existing industrial and logistics properties in the eastern half of the USA, investing in assets with recurring income and strong current cash yields.