BIG Shopping Centers Israel Acquires Two Shopping Centers in Poland for the First Time – Investment of Around EUR 65 Million

The first commercial center is located in the city of Andrychow and comes with a leasable area (GLA) of approximately 23,300 square meters with an occupancy rate of 100%. The complex, in the style of a retail park, similar to some of the BIG Centers in Israel, Serbia, and the USA, serves approximately 200 thousand people.

The commercial park has several anchor tenants, including the LIDL supermarket and the DIY stores` chain Leroy Merlin, as well as tenants in the electrical, fashion, sports, leisure, and other sectors.

The second commercial center in Lubin includes a leasable area (GLA) of approximately 13,300 square meters and is expected to be open to the public during September 2022 with an occupancy rate of approximately 100%. The commercial center has several anchor tenants and leading brands in Europe, including CARREFOUR, Media Expert, Sports Direct, CCC, Sinsay, Jula, and more.

Hay Galis, CEO of BIG, points out that these purchases reflect the company`s plans to locate strategic assets in Eastern Europe and the Balkans.

– Entering the Polish market is essential to becoming a prominent player in the market and Poland is full of potential for development. At the same time, we continue to expand the activity in Eastern Europe through AFI Properties, which is currently in a boom of activity, as reflected in the scope of the new transactions it carried out during the last year and in the development of projects under construction.

BIG Shopping centers was established in 1994 by Yehuda Naftali, BIG Shopping Centers Ltd. It is a leading real estate group in Israel, focusing on developing, operating, and investing in open shopping and lifestyle centers, logistics, offices, and residential and renewable energy. BIG is a public company listed on the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange since 2006, with a market cap of circa EUR 3.1 Billion as of December 31, 2021.

It is included in the prestigious TA-35 index (the index of the 35 prominent companies listed on the stock exchange in Israel). BIG is the controlling shareholder (circa 85%) of AFI Properties Ltd. Since January 2021, AFI Properties Ltd. has been a leading entrepreneurial company of high magnitude yielding real estate assets, mainly focusing on offices and residential sectors. Today, the company operates in five countries: Israel, Serbia, Romania, Poland, and the Czech Republic. AFI Properties is a public company listed on the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange since 2004, with a market cap of circa EUR 2.1 billion, as of December 31, 2021.