Hong Kong-based Gaw Capital Partners has completed the acquisition of Florentia Village Chengdu, a premium outlet mall in Chengdu, through an onshore pre-REITs fund where it serves as co-general partner, the firm said in a release.
The other co-GP is GSUM Fund Management, a domestic Chinese fund manager.
Investors in the fund include a major Chinese discount retailer and domestic insurance companies. The deal also marks Gaw Capital’s first participation in an RMB-denominated fund.
Opened in 2017, Florentia Village Chengdu is one of the largest outlet malls in western China. A Phase III expansion completed in June lifted total retail area to about 75,000 square metres, making it the largest outlet within the Florentia Village network. The mall is positioned as southwest China’s first luxury designer outlet, offering a mix of international luxury and designer brands.
RDM, the real estate arm of Italy-based Fingen Group and the original operator of the outlet platform, will continue to manage the asset.
Gaw Capital has been investing in China’s outlet mall sector since 2012, when it formed a joint venture platform to develop and operate luxury outlets. In 2017, it launched its China Outlet Mall Fund, and in 2023 acquired Florentia Village Guangzhou, a 62,200-square-metre outlet mall in the southern city.
China’s outlet mall market reached RMB 230 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to RMB 640 billion by 2030, according to JLL, supported by rising demand from the country’s expanding middle-income population.
