Sweden is a priority market for Grosvenor Europe, with six existing shopping center assets and other commercial properties within its portfolio. Its strategy for creating value in these locations is driven by a ‘Living cities’ philosophy, which guides intelligent and sustainable city development that creates vibrant and resilient places that people will want to live, work and spend time in.

Skärholmen Centrum in Stockholm and Burlöv Centrum in Malmö are the first existing assets in which Grosvenor is considering the residential strategy, and talks are also underway with local municipalities about the most effective ways to deliver much needed housing.

James Raynor, CEO of Grosvenor Europe, comments: “Our goal has always been to make our shopping centres into dynamic meeting places where people want to spend their time. They are really mixed-use schemes, containing libraries, nurseries, health centres, eateries and local authority offices. Our view of these assets is that they are not only good investments, but they can be made better by using that sense of place. We look at how we can make it better for its own sake and for the people who use it."

“If you look at our ‘Living cities’ philosophy, the way we think about it is to leave things better than the way they were before, and that is what this is about. We are considering how delivering housing will positively contribute to the success of these locations."

“Discussions are already underway with several of the municipalities in question, particularly looking at how we might assist them in delivering housing in a sustainable way that benefits not only our business and our investors, but importantly, the local community too.”
 
Grosvenor is strengthening its Swedish team to support this growth. Along with new hires, two members of the Grosvenor team based in Europe will now be heavily focused on the Swedish market. Steve Cowen and Simone Pozzato will be actively sourcing opportunities. Carl Strufve, Director, Asset Management, continues to lead the asset management team in the region.

James Raynor adds: “As a creative, innovative and professional real estate company, we see many opportunities in Sweden, and Stockholm in particular. We are already in a strong position and are looking forward to our next phase of growth.”