Sonae Sierra: Strategic investment and services growth

At EXPO REAL in Munich, Sonae Sierra’s commercial director for Europe & New Markets, Marta Costa, told CRE Media Europe that the company is entering a period of significant growth and transformation across European markets.

Marta Costa

The expansion strategy is grounded in both direct M&A investment and an expanding portfolio of third-party professional services.

The company is using strategic acquisitions and institutional partnerships to widen its European operational footprint:

Following the acquisition of REM (Real Estate Management)—the third-party services provider previously belonging to Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield—Sonae Sierra solidified its position as the second-largest shopping centre operator in Germany. This transaction significantly expanded its third-party service and management portfolio in Central Europe.  

Together with Norges Bank IM, Sonae Sierra is acquiring 8 directly owned assets combined with 7 managed shopping centre assets in Spain.

The company is also scaling its integrated real estate services platform across its core operational markets—Portugal, Spain, Italy, Germany, and Morocco. This business unit offers property management, leasing, urban planning, architecture, and technical consulting to a network of international third-party investors.

Retail market revival

Costa pointed out that institutional sentiment toward European physical retail has turned noticeably positive over the past two years.

Operational fundamentals in Southern European retail markets (notably Spain, Italy, and Portugal) have displayed robust growth, driving strong investor interest and transactional liquidity.

Two years ago, investor sentiment toward retail was largely bearish. Today, investor perception has flipped—driven by solid footfall, low vacancy rates, and resilient tenant turnover across both shopping centres and retail parks.

While Northern European markets have been slower to re-price, fundamental operational strength is expected to trigger a similar uptick in investor activity.

Outlook

At EXPO REAL, overall market sentiment remains cautiously optimistic, according to Costa. While higher interest rates and competing fixed-income yields continue to challenge capital deployment, activity across key real estate sub-sectors is steadily recovering.

In Retail & Shopping Centres, operational health and strong performance are bringing institutional capital back.

There is dynamism and demand in Living/Residential across European markets, making it one of the most active asset classes.

Finally, Workplaces / Offices are re-stabilising following post-COVID remote work shifts, with growing tenant demand focused on prime, well-connected assets.

Branislav Pekic