Owner puts Union Square retail park up for sale – Daily Business

Aberdeen’s Union Square shopping centre has been put up for sale for £175 million just two years after it was sold by Hammerson.

The 550,000 sq ft shopping centre opened in 2009 adjacent to Aberdeen’s bus and railway stations. It was acquired by an affiliate of Lone Star Real Estate Fund VI in February 2024 for £111m.

Union Square has enjoyed some recent success with tenants expanding and new ones arriving. Marks & Spencer, which closed its St Nicholas Street branch, doubled to a 100,000 sq ft anchor unit at the retail park.

TK Maxx and Apple have also expanded, while recent lettings include Ikea, Mango, Schuh, Victoria’s Secret, Hobbs, The Entertainer and Wingstop, resulting in a 22% increase in net income over the last 36 months.

“Union Square is a huge success story and its recent lettings, substantial tenant investment, rental trajectory and strong trading platform are exactly what you want to see from a thriving retail asset with strong sustainability credentials,” said Charlie Barke, head of capital markets at agent Knight Frank.

“Combined with a superb economic backstory to this exceptional city, further boosted by recent support for opening up the oil and gas fields at Jackdaw and Rosebank, the future here looks incredibly bright.”