Myer Melbourne in Bourke Street Mall is one of the world’s most tightly held retail properties. The landmark building’s beauty department is viewed as a major tourist and consumer destination in its own right, encompassing all the major names.
Charter Hall and the Abacus Property Group have acquired a majority stake of 66 per cent – a third each – in the iconic store for AUD$270.4 million. The acquisition is the biggest CBD retail deal nationwide in 2021 to date and the largest Melbourne CBD transaction in more than 13 years.
Charter Hall has major retail investments and its portfolio includes Campbelltown Mall, Pacific Shopping Square in Maroubra and Secret Harbour Square in WA. The Abacus Property Group mainly invests in office buildings, including 99 Walker Street in North Sydney, Westpac House in Adelaide and 33 Queen Street in Brisbane.
Myer Melbourne is 100 per cent leased to Myer Holdings and offers more than nine levels of retail spanning 40,000 square metres. The remaining 33 per cent ownership has been retained by property manager Vicinity Centres.
The deal will close at the end of July. According to Lachlan MacGillivray, Head of Retail Investment for Colliers International who co-brokered the sale, Myer Melbourne represented one of the best CBD retail offerings in Australian history as the strongest single performing department store in Australia.