TOM 04 2022

T
TOPS
M
OF THE MONTH
O
Essential News About The Players In
The Retail Property Market In Germany
THE HOTTEST DEALS +++
INTERVIEWS +++ STATEMENTS
+++ PARTICULARS +++
ANALYSES +++ PROJECTS
presented by HI-HEUTE.DE
April 2022
The Germans have thoroughly lost the desire to make purchases.
Consumer climate at historic low
GfK: Hopes of recovery finally dashed
According to GfK, consumer
sentiment in Germany deteriorated
significantly in April
for the second time in succession.
Both economic and income
expectations as well as
propensity to buy suffered noticeable
losses. GfK forecasts
-26.5 points for May, 10.8
points lower than in April.
This means that consumer sentiment
is plummeting to a new
historic low and is well below
the previous record low from
the spring of 2020 during the
first Corona lockdown. A noticeable
increase in the propensity
to save in April accelerated
this crash.
Consequences of
war and inflation
„The Ukraine war as well as
high inflation have dealt a severe
blow to consumer sentiment.
This has finally dashed hopes
of a recovery as a result of the
easing of pandemic-related restrictions,“
explains GfK consumer
expert Rolf Bürkl.
Acute risk
of recession
The explosion in energy prices
as a result of the great uncertainty
caused by the war and the extensive
sanctions against Russia
have also caused consumers‘
income prospects to slip. High
inflation rates are melting away
consumers‘ purchasing power.
As a result, income expectations
fell to -31.3 points in April.
This is 9.2 points lower than in
March and the lowest value for
the indicator in almost twenty
years. The last time a worse
value was measured was in February
2003 with -32.8 points.
Bürkl: „There will only be a
sustainable turnaround in consumer
confidence if there are
successful peace negotiations in
the war in Ukraine.“
Following the slump in the
previous month, economic expectations
again suffered significant
losses in April. The indicator
loses 7.5 points and drops
to -16.4 points. Compared with
the same period of the previous
year, the decline amounts to almost
24 points. From the consumer‘s
point of view, the risk to
the German economy has risen
further and the danger of a recession
is assessed as high. The
ongoing Ukraine war, a further
tightening of sanctions against
Russia and disrupted supply
chains are slowing the economy
and preventing the easing
of pandemic-related restrictions
from unleashing their positive
impact.
Symbol image: Pixabay / Peggy and Marco Lachmann-Anke
Consequently, economic experts
have recently significantly
reduced their forecast for economic
growth this year. In its
recently published forecast, for
example, the German Council
of Economic Experts (Sachverständigenrat
zur Begutachtung
der gesamtwirtschaftlichen Entwicklung),
the so-called „economic
experts“, expects the
German economy to grow by
just under two percent in 2022.
Purchases on the
decline
In the wake of falling economic
and income expectations, the
propensity to buy has also declined
for the third time in succession.
With a significant drop
of 8.5 points, the indicator has
fallen to -10.6 points. This is the
lowest level for more than 13
years. In October 2008 - at the
time of the financial and economic
crisis - the last time a worse
value was measured was -20.1
points. In addition to the general
uncertainty, it is above all the
sharp rise in prices that is dampening
consumer sentiment.
If significantly more has to be
spent on gasoline, heating oil
and gas, this leaves correspondingly
fewer financial resources
for other purchases.

Page 2 T O M
NEWS
April 2022
Shopping centers are increasingly
focusing on the experience factor
EHI observes stagnating number of assets
The consequences of the Corona
pandemic will continue
to present stationary retail
with major challenges in
2022. Experts suspect that the
negative developments on the
U.S. market, with vacancies,
high rents and strong competition
from online providers,
will soon also be seen in Germany.
In addition, investors and project
developers have become
much more cautious after the
boom years. Shopping center
operators want to counter this
trend with new concepts - such
as a stronger focus on entertainment.
„In the future, a considerable
transformation process
with a lot of restructuring is to
be expected in Germany, especially
for large inner-city shopping
centers and department
stores,“ says EHI retail expert
Marco Atzberger on the results
of the Shopping Center Report
2022.
At the beginning of 2022, 493
shopping centers with a minimum
area of more than 10,000
square meters were operating
Pepco, one of Europe‘s leading
retailers, will now also
be present in Germany. On
April 28, the first Pepco store
will open in the Boulevard
Berlin shopping center.
The range includes high-quality
clothing for the whole family
and household goods at
low prices.Klépierre is delighted
with the leasing success.
Markus Schwarting, Head of
Leasing Territory Klépierre:
„With 550 square meters of
retail space, Pepco fits perfectly
into the center‘s sector mix
and the demand situation in the
catchment area, which extends
as far as Potsdam. A great start
for our leasing ambitions in the
third-party business for other
investors.“
Shopping centers are focusing on new concepts.
Symbol image: Pixabay / Pascal König
in Germany, as in the previous
year. This means that the total
number remained unchanged
for the second time - despite a
new opening in Fürth, which,
however, took place on the site
of a previous center. Total floor
space increased only slightly
to almost 16 million square
meters. In the current calendar
year, too, only isolated projects
are expected to be implemented
in the German shopping center
market. By the end of the year,
Pepco offers families all products
for price-conscious household
management including
fashion for children, men‘s
the total number could increase
by two to three properties. For
the next few years - including
2022 - EHI is aware of 15 shopping
center plans - significantly
fewer than in the planning lists
of previous years. With regard
to revitalizations and conversions
of existing properties, there
remains a clear restraint. Last
year, the list of revitalization
projects included 27 properties.
This year, the number has dropped
to 20 objects.
Klépierre brings first German
Pepco to Berlin
New opening in the Boulevard shopping center
Pepco celebrates its German premiere at the Boulevard Berlin
shopping center.
Photo: Pepco
and women‘s clothing, fashion
accessories, shoes, toys, household
goods and decorative
items.
Redevco acquires
majority stake in
Hamburg-based
redos Group
Redevco, one of the largest private
real estate investment managers
in Europe, has acquired
a majority stake in redos Group,
the Hamburg-based specialist
in large-scale retail and urban
logistics properties. Founded in
2004, redos is now one of the
leading asset and investment managers
for retail parks and local
shopping locations in Germany.
In addition, the company has a
growing business unit for urban
logistics space and properties,
which enables an integrated approach
to serving urban and peri-urban
areas. The acquisition
strengthens Redevco‘s market
position, particularly in the
highly attractive and crisis-resistant
retail park segment, and
increases assets under management
(AuM) from €6.7 billion
to around €9.7 billion. Redevco
Services Deutschland GmbH,
based in Düsseldorf, and redos
will operate independently in
the future. Both companies will
continue their respective mandates,
pursue their own investment
strategies and serve their respective
investors. Lars Heese, Managing
Director Global Transaction
Management, and Rowan
Verwoerd, Portfolio Director,
will continue to be responsible
for the business activities of redevco
Services Deutschland.
New EHI study:
Cash continues to
lose importance in
store shopping
Cash is playing an increasingly
minor role in shopping in Germany
as a result of the pandemic.
Last year, 38.5 percent of sales in
stationary retail were paid for in
cash, reported the Cologne-based
retail research institute EHI
in a recently published study.
Before the pandemic - in 2019
- it was 46.5 percent. Increasingly,
customers were reaching for
their cards instead of cash when
paying. As a result, the revenue
share of card payments in stationary
retail rose from 50.5 percent
in 2019 to 58.8 percent last year.
The most popular card was the
Girocard, formerly the EC card.
More than 42 percent of stationary
retail sales were paid with it.
Credit cards were also used more
frequently.

Page 3 T O M
TOP STATEMENT OF THE MONTH April 2022
TOP STATEMENT
April
„Retail is sometimes
also part-time
chaplaincy.“
Bernd Titius, Managing
Director of the fashion
house Pecht in Bad Neustadt
(Bavaria) in an article
in the trade journal
„Textilwirtschaft“
Photo: Jana Schrenk / Mainpost

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Page 5 T O M
ANALYSES April 2022
Generation Z between
consumption and sustainability
ECC study shows ambivalence of youth - retail can help
A new ECC CLUB study takes
a close look at Generation Z
and reveals the target group‘s
disagreement on the subject
of sustainability. Despite the
high importance of the topic,
young consumers feel overwhelmed
by the sheer number
of options. Retailers can provide
assistance, particularly at
the point of sale.
Large sections of Generation
Z - the 16- to 26-year-olds - accuse
their older counterparts of
gambling away their future by
not consuming sustainably. Too
little is being done to protect
the environment in particular,
and tougher measures are needed
- but Generation Z itself
finds it difficult to do without.
Two-thirds of young consumers
believe it is possible to live sustainably
without compromising
on lifestyle. This year‘s ECC
CLUB Study 2022 „Future
Needs of Generation Z“ by ECC
COLOGNE shows the ambivalent
feelings the young generation
has to contend with.
Spontaneous purchases
instead of
targeted searches
The largest share of Generation
Z consumers tends to buy sustainable
food on a situational
basis and depending on what is
available locally. Only around
one in four young consumers
specifically searches for and
buys sustainable products (27
percent). Particularly at the
point of sale, retailers can act as
a reliable partner for Generation
Z, which is often overwhelmed
by the many choices available
(71 percent agree). After all,
despite high online affinity, the
POS is still ahead of social networks
in terms of inspiration
(POS 77 percent, social media
67 percent).
Sustainability is a high priority for Gen Z - but in practice, they don‘t always act accordingly.
The focus should also be on the
pricing factor: For 72 percent of
those surveyed, some of whom
are about to enter professional
life, the price factor necessarily
beats the sustainability factor.
And despite major concerns ab-
out climate change, the majority
of members of the so-called Gen
Z, 69 and 59 percent respectively,
continue to consume animal
products in the form of dairy
or meat products at least once a
week.
„Our ECC-CLUB study this
year reveals the divisiveness of
the young Generation Z. Even
though the majority of young
consumers are still optimistic
about the future, concerns resonate
in light of the crisis situations
of the last two years. In
these uncertain times, retailers
must also pay more attention
to Generation Z and its needs.
With honesty, trust and reliability,
retailers and manufacturers
can become an important partner
for 16- to 26-year-olds who
are open to being taken by the
hand,“ adds Dr. Ralf Deckers,
Head of Customer Insights at
ECC COLOGNE.
Comparison with others in real
life or on social media puts pressure
on 71 percent of Gen Z
members.
Brands yes, but
often secondhand
As a result, it‘s no surprise that
product brands play an important
role in shopping for one in
two (55 percent). 52 percent
also pay attention to the image
of the brand and therefore also
to any sustainability aspects.
Honest communication at eye
level with a view to socially
important issues can therefore
become a real success factor
for retailers and manufacturers.
A look at the channels also reveals
how Generation Z takes
sustainability into account when
shopping online. Around one
in two has already shopped via
a second-hand platform such
as eBay, Momox or Vinted (57
percent).
Symbol image: Unsplash / Markus Spiske
T O M
TOPS OF THE MONTH
Essential News About The Players In
The Retail Property Market In Germany
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www.wisag.de
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Page 7 T O M
NEWS April 2022
DI Group now has Emden‘s
Dollart Center in its portfolio
Management and leadership for East Frisian hybrid center
New success in the far north:
The Deutsche Immobilien
Group (DI Group) is now adding
the Dollart Center (DOC)
in Emden, Lower Saxony, to
its portfolio.
For an institutional fund, Real
I.S. is entrusting the DI experts
with center, property and leasing
management as well as technical
property management and building
services for the property.
„The DOC is an exciting task
in corona-related challenging
times. We are looking forward
to bringing our many years of
experience and ESG expertise
to East Frisia‘s largest shopping
center,“ explains DI CEO Benedikt
Jagdfeld.
With around 25,000 square meters,
the Dollart Center is one of
the largest shopping centers in
the region and offers great diversity
with 36 retail tenants. Anchor
tenants of the hybrid center
GPEP leases real‘s
ex-Future store to Globus
Tönisvorst retail park gets new tenant
Since the beginning of April,
the former real store in the Tönisvorst
retail park has been
operating under a new flag:
Globus reopened the hypermarket
under its own name
after a conversion period of
several weeks.
The DI Group has taken over the Dollart Center in Emden.
Photo: Dollart Center Emden
As part of this conversion, the
rental space was adapted to the
Globus concept. The realignment
included the conversion of
the corporate design, the product
range, the shelving as well as the
technology and IT.
Globus is one of the leading
operators of hypermarkets. The
new store will focus even more
strongly on freshness, in-house
production and regionality on
around 8500 square meters
of rental space. The non-food
section has been downsized in
favor of the food departments.
The store, which was previously
operated by real as a future store
to test innovative retail concepts,
will also be technically up to
date in future, with free WLAN
services and self-service scan-
upgrade it.
ning and check-out systems. A
Globus restaurant, a new bakery
and further expansion of the
fresh food counters and butchery
are planned for the near future.
Upgrading the location
Marc Neis, Deputy Head of Real
Estate Management at GPEP,
underlines the importance of the
long-term tenant change: „We
are pleased that this retail location,
which is important for the
are Multi (Edeka Group), expert,
H&M, JYSK - previously Dänisches
Bettenlager - and Aldi.
GPEP has leased the Ex-real in Toenisvorst to Globus and plans to
Photo: GPEP
region, will be further upgraded
by the Globus concept and the
upcoming measures. With our
real estate management services
and our industry know-how, we
have accompanied the change of
operator and the modernizations
in a spirit of partnership. We will
of course continue to do so in
the future in order to expand the
strong market position of our retail
property.“
B- and C-cities
increasingly in the
focus of capital
investors
The German partners of Sotheby‘s
International Realty
are seeing an increased focus
on B and C cities by families
in particular for owner-occupation,
but also by capital
investors. Sotheby‘s International
Realty partner Anita
Gärtner explains: „Due to the
shortage of supply in A-cities
and the continuing price
pressure there, many families
with children are moving to
the metropolitan regions of the
big cities, as real estate there
is more affordable for them.
The prerequisite, of course, is
a good infrastructure in terms
of transportation as well as
educational and cultural offerings.“
The increased interest
in B- and C-cities is also reflected
in figures. The global
network of Sotheby‘s International
Realty has achieved
a record sales volume of $204
billion in 2021, an increase of
36% compared to the previous
year ($150 billion). This
was due to a resurgence in demand
for premium properties
in metropolitan areas, as well
as increasing sales activity in
secondary markets and vacation
destinations worldwide.
The brand‘s US sales volume
grew by 33.8% year-on-year,
in EMEIA by 48% and in Germany
by 52%.
Amazon with massive
quarterly slump
and stock plunge
on shares in e-car manufacturer
Rivian. The tech company
is also posting heavy losses in
online retail. Amazon made a
loss of 3.8 billion dollars in the
first quarter of the year. The figures
published after the close
of the stock exchange caused
the share price to fall by more
than ten percent after trading,
after the share had previously
risen by 4.6 percent. It is
mainly the disappointing outlook
that worries investors.
Amazon warns that inflation
continues to plague the company.
Inflation added $2 billion
in costs in the first quarter,
he said, and inflationary
pressures aren‘t going away
anytime soon. Online retail
losses in the first quarter were
offset only by Amazon Web
Services‘ cloud business.

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Page 9 T O M
NEWS April 2022
Galeria moves to Tegel Quartier
with brand new store
HGHI is pleased about the new tenant in Berlin project
The department store company
Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof
is expected to open a brand
new store of around 10,000
square meters in the newly
designed pedestrian zone
Gorkistraße / Tegel Quartier
in Berlin-Tegel as early as October
2022.
It will be a record year for Peter
Pane: In 2022, the company
will grow to 50 restaurants
and 2,000 employees, and annual
sales will reach a peak of
120 million euros.
„We are very happy that we can
inspire so many people with our
products and our heart‘s desire,
sustainability,“ says Patrick
Junge, owner and CEO of Peter
Pane. „The recognition by our
guests is a great gift. And also
the many applications we get
every day at Peter show that
Peter Pane continues to grow in
popularity.“
Vegan and vegetarian on trend
Already more than half (55
percent) of the menu is vegan
or vegetarian. The company is
Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof plans to open a new store in Berlin‘s
The new store in Tegel will be
developed entirely in line with
the Galeria 2.0 strategy. The
sales area will offer a modern
shopping experience thanks to
furniture that is directly coordinated
with the product ranges,
a suitably aligned lighting
concept and high-quality lightcolored
floors. At this location,
too, Galeria will select the assortments
according to the principle
of „trading up“ and „trending
up“ and adapt them to local
needs, take regional elements
into account, thus creating a
completely new quality of stay
for customers and forming a
strong point of attraction in the
pedestrian zone Gorkistraße /
Tegel Quartier.
With the opening of an entirely
new store in Tegel, Galeria is
not only making a strong commitment
to Berlin as a location,
but also to the consistent Ger-
Tegel Quarter in October.
many-wide continuation of its
own strategy. „Without a doubt,
this sensational new lease to
Galeria represents an absolute
highlight for our major project,“
says Harald Gerome Huth, owner
and managing director of
HGHI Holding GmbH.
The Gorkistraße / Tegel Quartier
pedestrian zone construction
project, the only one of its
kind in Germany, represents the
extensive modernization and
expansion of the entire, approx.
250 meters long pedestrian
zone Gorkistraße including the
former shopping center Tegel-
Center, the former department
store Hertie as well as the traditional
market hall Tegel. The revitalization
and transformation
Peter Pane looks forward
to one more record year
Number of stores grows to 50
Patrick Junge, owner and managing
director of Peter Pane.
Photo: Peter Pane
completely free of palm oil, soy,
GMOs, artificial additives and
flavor enhancers. All products
come from regional, certified
farms. Plastic has long since
Visualization: HGHI
of the Gorkistraße pedestrian
zone is one of HGHI‘s largest
projects and consists of a total
of four extensive construction
phases. The architectural firms
Max Dudler, Pechtold, Ortner
& Ortner and Rautenbach
were involved in the design of
the new Gorkistraße pedestrian
zone. 36,000 square meters of
retail space
On a total of approximately
90,000 square meters of gross
floor area, around. 36,000
square meters of retail space
and about 28,000 square meters
of office space. „More than 90
percent of all rental space has
already been leased, a great
success for the project,“ says
Huth.
been replaced by paper, cardboard
and wood - from straws to
delivery packaging.
Founded at the start of the
Covid 19 pandemic, the inhouse
delivery service „Peter
Bringst‘s“ has become a fixture
of the company over the past
two years and is now so popular
that it already accounts for
about 20 percent of total sales.
The first five Peter Pane sauces
are now available in grocery
stores across Germany and can
be purchased there. All sauces
are vegan and sustainably
produced. Peter Pane has thus
made the leap to becoming a
multichannel foodservice company
in the last two years, and
this field will also be expanded
further in 2022.
EY Real Estate
restructures its
management team
EY Real Estate GmbH has appointed
Fabian Schuster and
Florian Schwalm as new managing
directors, effective July 1.
Christian Schulz-Wulkow, previous
member of the management
board, is leaving the company at
his own request in order to pursue
entrepreneurial activities.
Together with Monica A. Schulte
Strathaus - already a member
of the management board since
2016 - the new trio intends
to continue the long-standing
growth course of the leading real
estate and infrastructure consultancy
in the German-speaking
region. In particular, it is planned
to intensively expand the
range of services in the area of
digitalization and sustainability
around the topics of ESG strategy,
digital asset management and
infrastructure consulting.
New textile discounter
Pepco wants to conquer
German market
Kik will soon have competition
in Germany. This is because a
new textile discounter is launching
its first store in Berlin.
Pepco has already made a name
for itself as a textile discounter in
Europe. The company currently
operates 2,400 stores, around
1,000 of which are in Poland
alone. After expanding to Italy,
Spain and Austria, Pepco now
wants to take off with stores in
Germany. While the first Pepco
stores had already opened in
Austria in the fall of 2021, it took
a little longer in Germany. But in
the meantime, the first store is
ready to open in the Boulevard
Berlin shopping center. Further
locations are to follow before the
end of the year.
Meta opens first
stationary store in
cooperation with
Ray Ban
Meta has announced the opening
of its first brick-and-mortar store.
The store is scheduled to open its
doors on May 9 in Burlingame,
California, the Facebook parent
recently announced. The store
will offer VR goggles and eyewear
accessories - Meta‘s latest
model ‚Quest 2‘ will be featured,
a pair of glasses made specifically
for use in the Metaverse.

Page 11 T O M
NEWS April 2022
EDEKA continues
to grow and invest
Acquisition of Real stores opens up additional prospects
In the second year of the Corona
pandemic, the cooperative
model of retailing run by
independent merchants again
proved its strength. The approximately
3,500 merchants
in the EDEKA network generated
sales totaling 34.7 billion
euros in 2021 - an increase
of 4.7 percent compared with
the previous exceptional year
of 2020.
Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof recently
launched the roll-out
of the Galeria 2.0 strategy
with the completely remodeled
store in Euskirchen. In
October 2021, three showcase
stores had opened in Frankfurt,
Kassel and Kleve and
had shown success in the market
over the past six months
or so.
The three showcases represent
store types precisely tailored to
size and catchment area: Stores
in metropolitan areas, regional
magnet and local forum.
Galeria CEO Miguel Müllenbach
explains: „Euskirchen is
the starting signal for the implementation
of Galeria 2.0
in the stores. Other stores will
follow in the summer and fall.
These include store types with
complete remodels, such as
The EDEKA Group can present a pleasing annual balance sheet.
Photo: EDEKA
„Entrepreneurial spirit, customer
proximity, genuine variety
and the creation of shopping experiences
- the range of services
offered by EDEKA merchants
is unparalleled and remains our
greatest advantage in the intensely
competitive environment,“
says Markus Mosa, CEO of
EDEKA headquarters. In the
discount segment, the company‘s
subsidiary Netto Marken-
Discount recorded growth of
around one percent to currently
14.7 billion euros. Overall, the
EDEKA Group increased its sales
volume last year by 2.9 percent
to now 62.7 billion euros.
The start of 2022 will be overshadowed
by the war in Ukraine
and rising inflation in Germany.
Last year, the EDEKA Group
invested 2.2 billion euros in its
own retail infrastructure.
For the current year, as much as
2.8 billion euros have been budgeted
for this purpose. „What
we generate at EDEKA flows
back into the business and thus
benefits Germany as a business
Roll-out of Galeria 2.0
starts in Euskirchen
Completely modernized store to be followed by others
Fulda, as well as those that will
be significantly modernized
without requiring a complete
remodel, such as our Munich-
Marienplatz store. Added to
this is a new showcase for the
important business of stores in
centers, which we have not yet
presented at all. And finally, together
with our owner, we are
location as a whole - and not anonymous
investors,“ says Markus
Mosa.
The focus will continue to be
on expansion with future-proof
stores, optimization of the logistics
network, driving forward
digital innovations at all
levels, and - with BUDNI and
trinkgut - the expansion of specialized
specialty store concepts
in the drugstore and beverage
segment.
Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof has started the roll-out of the Galeria 2.0
strategy.
Photo: Galeria
in the process of pushing ahead
with some very large developments
that will not only literally
mean the creation of new large
stores, but also a considerable
enhancement of the respective
city centers. Alongside this,
we continue to work with high
energy on the completion of our
new online store.“
Surprisingly good Ifo
figures for April
Sentiment in the German economy
brightened surprisingly in
April. The Ifo business climate
rose by one point compared with
March to 91.8 points, as the Ifo
Institute recently announced in
Munich. Analysts, on the other
hand, had expected a downturn
to 89.0 points. In March, Germany‘s
most important economic
barometer had slumped because
of Russia‘s attack on Ukraine.
„After the initial shock of the
Russian attack, the German economy
is showing resilience,“
Ifo President Clemens Fuest
commented. He added that sentiment
had stabilized at a low
level. Companies‘ still pessimistic
expectations brightened noticeably,
and the current situation
was hardly assessed any better.
The business climate improved
in industry and among service
providers, while it deteriorated
in trade and construction.
FCR Immobilien has
a very good start of
the year
FCR Immobilien AG has made a
very successful start to the 2022
financial year. Earnings before
taxes, EBT, improved significantly
by 90% to €3.8 million,
compared to €2.0 million in the
same quarter last year. The operating
result from real estate
management, FFO, also increased
significantly by 64% to 2.3
million compared to 1.4 million
in the first quarter of 2021. The
very pleasing development is an
expression of the positioning of
FCR Immobilien AG with a focus
on the portfolio management
of shopping and retail centers.
Deutsche EuroShop:
Wilhelm Wellner
takes a break from
the Executive Board
Wilhelm Wellner, Spokesman
of the Executive Board of Deutsche
EuroShop AG, Hamburg,
will not be able to perform his
Executive Board duties until
at least the end of September
for health reasons. In view of
Wellner‘s expected return, the
Supervisory Board has at the
same time resolved to reappoint
him with effect from October
1. In the meantime, Wilhelm
Wellner‘s previous duties will
be assumed by the other member
of the Executive Board, Olaf
Borkers.

Page 13 T O M
GUEST CONTRIBUTION April 2022
Commonplace, but not self-evident
The future city centers - guest article by Stefan Postert, Ute Marks & Jens Nußbaum (Stadt + Handel)
What does the downtown experience
of tomorrow actually
look like? If we could get into
a time machine right now and
fast-forward into the future,
which downtown would we
like to encounter? What makes
it stand out? What will it
be?
Perhaps a twenty-hour mix of
retail, dining, culture, creativity
and community.
Or an equitable, sustainable, and
friendly place that celebrates its
historically valuable townscape
and where multicultural vibrancy,
entrepreneur:ic spirit, and
innovation are alive and well.
Or a place where protected nature
and creative city life successfully
come together in a
model of environmental, social
and economic sustainability.
Or a place where digital technology
is embraced and connects
us to our issues of the day,
thanks to our dual presence both
locally and around the globe.
Or a place where everyone is
welcome and wants to be.
Definitely. Maybe. Or yet in a
completely different way? Getting
to this or any other version
of the future for each of our
downtowns will take many bold
ideas and proposals to identify,
curate and implement. Some of
them will be easy to implement.
Others will take more time and
even more ingenuity. This requires
structures that are capable
of action in the short term
and sustainable in the long term.
And it requires business models
that reflect a new economic viability
for our inner cities. State
subsidies are a bridge, but not a
permanent solution.
The face of our downtowns will
change significantly after the
Covid 19 pandemic. Whether
for the better or for the worse
depends largely on the future
viability of supply structures
(especially beyond the retail
sector), the willingness of relevant
stakeholders to cooperate
and participate, and the creative
use of the potential of existing
spaces (both public and private).
To successfully manage this
transformation, the DNA of the
„third place“ downtown must be
rediscovered - by no more, by
no less. The complexity of this
task can be daunting. Therefore,
This is what makes city centers fun!
it must be organized in a manageable
and motivating way - and
it must produce visible results!
A process,
not a project
However, the challenges and
the tasks involved demand a
level of consideration that goes
far beyond basic spatial planning
drawings. It is therefore
essential to view the inner cities
as the place that people want to
experience in the future. And
this not only in hearings with
experts and specialists, but
also very consistently with the
people who produce urbanity
in our inner cities. Who make
our inner cities lovable, livable
and worthwhile - through their
actions. And who, as like-minded
people in their city centers,
think and act courageously and
together. Urbanity benefactors
who solicit each other‘s approval
and commitment. Who
work together with the city to
bring ideas to life. Drivers and
decision-makers in a lasting
process, characterized by new
collaboration and far-reaching
intervention.
Photo: Stadt + Handel
Because it is necessary: In many
city centers, their functional imbalance
is becoming apparent.
The commercial dominance
in their city centers, which has
been apparent for a long time
but is only now being noticed,
is literally falling to the feet of
those responsible in politics and
administration. The bloodletting
is great and in parts not yet really
foreseeable. What if retail
is not followed by more retail?
What if well-known and established
business models of inner-city
real estate break away?
What if the service providers
of our urbanity become service
recipients? The dimension and
complexity of the task is completely
new in many places and
can be mastered neither with
sectoral strategies nor with familiar
approaches.
New governance
instead of
business-as-usual
The current approach to so-called
governance - planning, organizing
and managing a downtown
- is often an isolated one:
one team designs recovery plans
after an extraordinary event like
Corona, another team addresses
sustainability issues, another
focuses on livelihood and
well-being, and yet another on
urban planning and infrastructure.
This may be an efficient
way to structure the work of a
downtown, but it is not the most
effective. Downtowns are systems,
not silos! Downtowns are
made up of people, of places,
and of milieus that often change
rapidly.
The new normal, regardless of
its duration and validity, requires
new governance models that
mitigate risk for downtowns
while increasing their ability
to respond adequately to the
evolution of new, unexpected
challenges. Business-as-usual
models of reactive planning and
isolated decision-making cannot
generate the fundamental
strength and flexibility needed
for (downtown) cities to succeed
in the face of acute Corona
shock and chronic stresses on
downtowns.
What is needed is an effective
immune system that strengthens
our downtowns and makes them
resilient to external influences.
However, this requires that we
deepen our understanding of the
risks that threaten the stability
of downtown structures. Only in
the knowledge of this and in recognition
of existing and imminent
challenges can appropriate
„immune responses“ be developed
in the form of pragmatic
measures and tailored concepts.
It is essential to take a holistic
view of the capacities and risks
of our inner cities, also and in
particular through meaningful
cooperation between all stakeholders
in urban society. By no
means, an easy task.
Meaningful
transformation
In all of this, it is important to
keep an eye on the ever-changing
visitor journey and take it
into account. This means that
our city centers must become
much more adaptable than they
have been up to now. Downtowns
must not only satisfy consumption
- no, they must also be
smart, green, people-friendly,
and above all, one thing: resilient.
A resilient inner-city future requires
addressing challenges
and creating solutions in ways
that are place-based, integrated,
inclusive, risk-aware, and forward-looking.
In this context,
urban resilience - apart from
Corona - responds to converging
megatrends, such as climate
change, urbanization, and
digitalization, and also includes
the ability to adapt and recover
from crises.
To stand firm and grow, regardless
of the chronic environmental,
social, economic, and technological
pressures and acute
shocks to which a downtown
is exposed. In short, to enable
transformation that makes sense.
That‘s why downtown development
is not (just) about the big
measures. About the one „big
shot.“

Page 15 T O M
INTERVIEW April 2022
Convincing customers with
flexibility in delivery time and location
Exclusive interview with P3 Logistic Parks Germany boss Sönke Kewitz
P3 Logistic Parks is the third
largest logistics property owner
in continental Europe
with a portfolio of 7.5 billion
euros in eleven countries. The
company also acts as an investor
and developer of logistics
properties and is wholly owned
by GIC, Singapore‘s sovereign
wealth fund. Of course,
it has also been active in Germany
for many years and is
very successful there. TOM
Editor-in-Chief Thorsten
Müller spoke with Germany
CEO Sönke Kewitz about the
reasons for impressively growing
sales, current challenges
and the next goals of the
company, which offers increasingly
significant warehouse
space, especially for retailers.
TOM: Mr. Kewitz, large logistics
companies like yours
or companies like Garbe, for
which you once worked, are
currently highly successful -
despite a global pandemic and
the war situation in Ukraine
that has been going on for about
two months. What have
you managed to do particularly
well, especially with regard
to your activities in Germany?
Sönke Kewitz: „In fact, things
really haven‘t gone badly here
in the last two years. We were
able to more than triple our
portfolio. Especially the acquisitions
of the pan-European Maximus
portfolio and the Matrix
portfolio with 33 German retail
logistics assets ensured a rapid
growth of our portfolio. Since
the beginning of 2020, P3‘s
German portfolio has grown
from 16 properties and around
400,000 sqm of leasable space at
the time to 67 properties and 1.7
million sqm of leasable space
today. The portfolio is fully leased.
Highlights of the past year
included P3‘s largest brownfield
project to date, which was
completed in Kamen, Germany.
We had signed all leases for this
nearly 130,000 sq. ft. property
before completion.“
Sönke Kewitz, Germany head of P3 Logistic Parks in conversation
with HI HEUTE.
Photo: TOM
TOM: Retail is going through
a bad time in this country
right now. First the everbooming
e-commerce, then
the closure phase during the
Covid boom, and currently
the merchandise and supply
shortages. How do you assess
the market and what does that
mean for your logistics business?
Sönke Kewitz: „Our consumer
behavior has already changed a
lot due to the points you described
and will continue to do so.
Why should you pick something
up when you can have it brought
to you? Basically, supermarkets
and even some shopping centers
are nothing more than delivery
warehouses, except that we drive
there ourselves. I‘m certain
that the future of shopping is
online - and that applies to nonfood
products just as much as to
groceries. Customers are ambivalent
in their desire for the fastest
possible delivery, but at the
same time for maximum sustainability.
It‘s in the hands of delivery
logistics to do justice to
both and thereby pay dividends
to the company‘s success.“
TOM: That should encourage
you and give you even more
impetus, right?
Sönke Kewitz: „Yes, of course.
The importance of logistics will
continue to rise, because in the
long term, the retailers that will
be successful will be those that
convince their customers with
flexibility in terms of delivery
time and location. From a retail
perspective, now is the right
time to rethink logistics processes
and to optimize and coordinate
procurement logistics, warehouse
logistics, distribution
logistics and store logistics.“
TOM: How then would you
describe the current requirements
from the point of view
of retailers for logistics companies
like yours?
Sönke Kewitz: „In addition
to small facilities close to city
centers, retailers today primarily
need larger logistics centers
that are strategically located, for
example in metropolitan regions
or near highway interchanges.
We are currently looking
more and more at brownfield
sites that can be developed into
logistics locations in a comparatively
uncomplicated way. It is
also not an exception, but rather
the rule, that tenants of urban
logistics properties are now primarily
online retailers.“
TOM: However, it is now not
only conceivable, but already
lived practice, that even
in shopping centers logistics
appears as a use variant, just
like offices or apartments.
Will this happen even more
frequently in the future?
Sönke Kewitz: „Urban logistics
competes with residential,
office and retail properties. Logistics
often has to take a back
seat in the process. But yes, there
will be more and more such
cases. Basically, it can be said
that the shortage of space in
urban centers will increasingly
lead retailers to convert unprofitable
stores or vacant space into
distribution centers to handle
online deliveries, returns and
click-and-collect orders. And
another important fact in this
context: In major cities, a tenminute
shorter transport route
can lead to savings of up to
one million euros per year. This
makes investments in new construction
and acquisition of highpriced
logistics centers in urban
areas profitable.“
TOM: What are your future
plans? What are P3‘s next
goals?
Sönke Kewitz: „We will continue
to acquire large portfolios
and aim to double our holdings
in Germany, worth just under
2.8 billion euros, over the next
four years. What many players
don‘t really know is that half
of the logistics properties that
will be needed in Germany in
the next ten years have not even
been built yet. So there is still
great potential there.
In general, we want to play a
major role in shaping the infrastructure
of today and tomorrow.
Our drivers for this are satisfied
customers, employees and people
living in the communities
where we operate, but also an
intact environment. We focus
on large portfolios in Europe,
but also on individual properties
in local markets. We want
to keep the ecological environment
constantly in mind, which
is why we are working to certify
all P3 properties with a BREE-
AM rating of „very good.“
TOM: Hearing about such
goals and plans also raises the
question of personnel. What is
the situation with that?
Sönke Kewitz: „The German
P3 team grew from 16 to 39
employees today in the last two
years. We would like to further
increase the team significantly
in the next few years.“

Page 16 T O M
MAP OF THE MONTH April 2022
GfK Purchasing Power Germany, Austria, Switzerland 2022
GfK’s Map of the Month for April shows the regional
distribution of purchasing power in Germany, Austria
and Switzerland in 2022. With an average per
capita purchasing power of €41,758, the Swiss will
once again have significantly more money available
for spending and saving in 2022 than the neighboring
Germans (€24,807) and Austrians (€24,759).
However, there are significant regional differences
in terms of net disposable income not only between
the three countries but also within each country. In
Switzerland, the district of Höfe takes first place by
far. People there have an average of €97,329 at their
disposal, well over 3 times the purchasing power of
the Bernina region, which has the lowest purchasing
power (€30,608). Among Austrians, Vienna‘s
first district (inner city) leads the way with a per capita
purchasing power of €40,332, while Vienna‘s
15th district (Rudolfsheim-Fünfhaus) brings up the
rear with €19,587. The purchasing power gap widens
least in Germany: with a per capita purchasing
power of €34,758, the Starnberg district leads the
ranking of German districts; Gelsenkirchen comes
last with a net disposable income of €19,778 per inhabitant.