Hammerson to raise millions

Hammerson, the shopping centre operator behind Aberdeen’s Union Square, is set to raise more than £800 million as it sells its 50 per cent stake in European shopping centre owner VIA Outlets and asks shareholders to chip in.

The company said that the moves will help it pay down a massive debt bill, reducing it to around £2.2 billion. It means a major retreat from parts of the European market, where VIA is a big player.

The business owns 11 premium outlets in nine European countries, with 1,130 stores in total, giving it the third largest portfolio by area on the continent. Hammerson said it had hashed out a deal to sell VIA to its partner APG, a Dutch pension fund for £274m.

Bosses also plan to ask investors to help them out by buying a further £552m of new shares in the company.

It will plough the cash into paying down debt, and investing in a transformation of the business.

Chief executive David Atkins pronounced the end of the way shops are rented in the UK, saying it was in dire need of change.

“The pandemic has exacerbated structural shifts in retail, exerting further pressure on both property owners and brands, and provided further evidence that the UK’S historic leasing model has served its time,” he said.

“It is outdated, inflexible and needs to change.”

Atkins’ solution includes more flexible leases, setting rents at more affordable levels, tying rents to an index, rather than the current system of reviews, and what the company calls an “omnichannel top-up element”, in short connecting online shopping with physical stores.

Hammerson, which owns the Bullring in Birmingham, said that it had managed to collect 34 per cent of the rent that is due for the third quarter. It has seen a strong recovery in both France and Ireland. Its UK portfolio relies more heavily on sites in city centres.