1. Egypt: Hotel That Hosted Suez Canal Opening Gets Redeveloped
Saudi Arabian construction company Al-Sharif Group has awarded a contract to Egyptian firm SIAC Construction to develop, renovate and expand the Shepheard Hotel in Cairo, Egypt, a world renowned property that once hosted events including the opening of the Suez Canal.
The 276-room hotel was closed in 2014, and operator Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group plans to reopen it in 2024 as the Mandarin Oriental Shepheard, Cairo. Located on the eastern bank of the Nile River, the hotel’s many historical touches will be kept intact.
2. Germany: Amazon Vacating Large Warehouse Near Berlin
Amazon is vacating its first large warehouse in Germany, with the online retailer saying the property in Brieselang, 40 kilometers west of Berlin, is relatively old and could not be modernized.
The closing, first reported by research center Corrective, will lead to the loss of 600 jobs. Amazon moved in 2013 into the 70,000-square-meter property, which was developed by Goodman. A year later, Dutch bank ING provided Goodman with a €54 million loan secured against a portfolio of nine logistics hubs, including one in Brieselang.
3. UK: Chanel Sells London Building in Prime Retail Area
Chanel sold a Bond Street property, including an office block occupied by the luxury fashion house and an Alexander McQueen retail showroom, for £140 million.
A private North American investor, advised by Michael Elliott, bought the 20,965-square-foot block in one of London’s prime retail corridors. The showroom is leased to Alexander McQueen for another 9.5 years, with offices on the upper floors leased to Chanel.
4. France: Venture Targets Development of Coliving Rentals
Investor Bouygnes Immoblier partnered with a fund managed by Ares Management, seeking to make an initial €450 million investment in the coliving rental category under the Nomo Brand.
“This partnership strengthens and accelerates our strategy of deploying a new-generation housing offer,” Olivier Durix, general manager with Bouygues Immobilier, said in a statement. This marks Bouygnes Immoblier’s first project since 2020 geared to build-to-rent properties featuring shared living spaces, with the first site under the partnership slated to open in Bordeaux in late 2023.
5. Canada: Regulations Keep Chipotles Out of Quebec
California chain Chipotle Mexican Grill has been opening new locations in Canada, but there are no Chipotles in the entire province of Quebec.
Several American fast-food chains have never set foot in Quebec because of a combination of economics, legalities and cultural tendencies, including language laws that are about to get more stringent, said Éric Blais, president of Toronto-based Headspace Marketing, which consults with retailers about the Quebec market. “It’s a huge task for someone who wants to expand in the market,” Blais said.
6. US: Investor With Ties To NFL’s Peyton Manning Enters Build-to-Rent Business
A Nashville developer with ties to former NFL star quarterback Peyton Manning that has helped reshape urban areas in the Tennessee capital is expanding into build-to-rent projects, starting in a fast-growth Southeast region.
AJ Capital Partners, known for developing Graduate Hotels in U.S. college towns, has launched Outpost Residential to build rental homes around the country. It already has started construction on 247 homes in Foley, Alabama, about a half hour drive from the Gulf of Mexico, in a rental neighborhood being developed on the site of a former pecan orchard.
This report was compiled from CoStar’s international news publications in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France and Germany.