Investment Manager Makes $107m WA Retail Debut

A retail centre in Perth’s south-east has changed hands for $107 million as an investment manager makes its first foray into the sector and a retail heavyweight continues its divestments.

Realside Property has purchased Maddington Central, 18km south-east of the Perth CBD, a 27,661sq m convenience-based sub-regional shopping centre anchored by Coles, Woolworths and Kmart.

Those anchor tenants contribute $138.1 million to the centre’s annual turnover of $208.7 million, according to CBRE, whose Simon Rooney and James Douglas managed the off-market sale campaign on behalf of Vicinity Centres.

Realside chief executive Linda Rudd said this first retail acquisition “has created a key opportunity to diversify and expand on our existing office and industrial portfolio”.

“Realside will work with Sirona Urban, who are appointed as asset and development manager, to assist in delivering our vision for the property to unlock a revitalised retail and community precinct,” Rudd said.

▲ Realside is planning a revitalisation of the centre in Perth’s south-east.

CBRE head of retail capital markets, Pacific, Simon Rooney said the West Australian retail market continued to be a focus for investors “given the state’s solid economic fundamentals, which have translated into robust retail asset performance”.

“In the case of Maddington, there is significant mixed-use development potential ... given the underutilised 13.16ha landholding, including an adjoining separately titled vacant land component of 1.56ha favourably zoned ‘regional centre’.”

The centre benefitted from an extensive and growing main trade area population of 219,336, about double the benchmark national trade area population for a sub-regional shopping centre, CBRE said.

It is also expected to further benefit from committed infrastructure and urban renewal projects within the trade area, including an $1-billion investment in the WA Government’s Metronet rail infrastructure.

▲ AWH has re-signed for its WA logistics and warehousing base.

Meanwhile, Australia’s largest listed pure-play industrial fund, Centuria Industrial REIT, said it had secured WA’s largest industrial leasing deal for the 2024 calendar year-to-date, extending AWH’s lease across 94,241sq m for a further seven-year term from August, 2025.

AWH has operated at the 310 Spearwood Avenue and Lot 14 Sudlow Road, Bibra Lake premises since 2012—the new deal means it will remain until 2032.

“AWH is one of Australia’s leading logistics and warehousing specialists, providing storage, handling, transport and inventory management services for import, export and domestic distribution,” Centuria said.

AWH chief executive Michael Potenza said business continuity was a significant consideration for its operations.

“We are the largest independent logistics services provider to the Australian wool and cotton industries, handling approximately a million bales of wool annually while also facilitating sale room services for the three national wool-selling centres as part of our third-party logistics operations,” Potenza said.

“So, our premises are key to our operations. There are few industrial sites within proximity to road, sea ports, airports and rail transport nodes of this scale in WA, which is why we have continued to operate from here since 2012.”

AWH is the Centuria fund’s largest tenant by area, accounting for 4 per cent of the REIT’s annual rental revenue, and is one of its top-10 customer tenants by revenue.