Ares and Slate to acquire €300m+ Polish retail portfolio

Real estate manager Ares Management Corporation (Ares) and investor Slate Asset Management (Slate) have formed a joint venture to acquire a portfolio of 36 retail properties in Poland

Ares Slate - Polish asset

The assets, valued at over €300 mln, were acquired from developer and asset manager Trei Real Estate.
The acquired portfolio consists of recently developed and fully leased retail parks that focus on convenience. These properties are strategically situated in major Polish metropolitan areas, serving large populations. 
The lease agreements are protected against inflation as they are linked to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), and the tenants are financially strong. The majority of the income from these properties comes from major regional retailers and essential service providers, such as grocery stores and pharmacies.
Kevin Cahill, partner and head of European Diversified Investments in the Ares Real Estate Group, said: “This transaction underlines our conviction in Polish real estate and the broader European retail sector, both of which are areas in which Ares has been investing for over two decades. We believe the Portfolio presents significant opportunities for additional value creation and we look forward to working closely with Slate to unlock its full potential.”
Sven Vollenbruch, managing director at Slate, commented: “This Portfolio of modern, high-quality properties is a natural fit for our income-focused essential real estate strategy, which specifically targets convenience and necessity-based retail and other mission-critical real estate across Europe. After years of studying the Polish market and underwriting essential real estate transactions, this acquisition presented the right opportunity to enter Poland and add a valuable new spoke to our growing Pan-European platform.”
Pepijn Morshuis, CEO of Trei Real Estate, added: “We are big believers in the further growth of retail parks and convenience retail in Poland. With ownership of Trei increasingly focusing on the USA, however, in Ares and Slate we found good and trusted new owners of our beloved Vendo Parks, enabling us to pursue other opportunities in the far west.”
This acquisition represents Slate Asset Management's initial foray into the Polish market, thereby expanding its European holdings of high-quality, essential real estate.
The deal is anticipated to be finalized by December 31, 2025, pending the usual regulatory and customary approvals. Ares and Slate received advisory services for this transaction from Rymarz Zdort Maruta, CBRE, PwC, and Gleeds.