Charter Hall has completed the acquisition of a portfolio of three sub-regional shopping centres from Vicinity Centres for $250.3 million. The portfolio comprises Whitsunday Plaza in Airlie Beach, Gympie Central on the Sunshine Coast and Armidale Central in northern NSW.
The assets record combined retail turnover of $450.6 million, with combined supermarket productivity of $18,245 per sqm. All centres are leased to Woolworths under long-term agreements. The portfolio has a total GLA of 50,978 sqm, with 91 per cent leased to national and chain retailers.
More than 68 per cent of gross rental income is linked to rental escalation mechanisms, including fixed annual increases of 3 per cent, 4-5 per cent, or CPI and CPI plus 2.5 per cent.
Simon Rooney, head of retail capital markets, Pacific at CBRE, was appointed to manage the transaction through an off-market expressions of interest process. “The sales process was highly competitive, generating significant enquiry, genuine buyer interest and competitive bidding on both a portfolio and individual asset basis, including private and institutional investors,” he said.
Between 2025 and 2026, about $2.1 billion of sub-regional shopping centres were transacted across Australia. The segment continues to record transaction activity, supported by exposure to non-discretionary retail and rental structures linked to indexation.
Whitsunday Plaza is located in Airlie Beach and is anchored by Woolworths and Big W. The centre serves a trade area population of about 40,260. It records specialty sales productivity of $16,078 per sqm and an occupancy cost ratio (OCR) of 8.0 per cent.
Gympie Central, also anchored by Woolworths and Big W, has a GLA of 14,155sqm. Located about 80km northwest of Maroochydore, it serves a trade area population of more than 67,000. The centre records specialty sales productivity of $14,310 per sqm and an OCR of 9.5 per cent.
Armidale Central is located on a 24,370 sqm site in the Armidale CBD. The centre is anchored by Woolworths and Kmart, alongside The Reject Shop, 33 specialty stores and kiosks, across 14,512sqm of GLA. The asset provides both convenience and destination retail within its trade area.
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