Liberty Intl acquires 25% in Prozone

MUMBAI: The first mall being developed by Provogue and FTSE 100 property company Liberty International is expected to open its doors by December next.
The 980,000 sq ft property in Aurangabad will be its first joint venture after UK-based Liberty International, which controls realty valued above £7.5 billion, took a 25% stake in Provogue's retail infrastructure subsidiary — Prozone.
Liberty, which owns nine out of UK's top 25 shopping centres like London's Covent Garden, Victoria Centre in Nottingham and Manchester's Arndale, will be investing Rs 202.5 crore and provide expertise in developing world-class shopping centres in India, five of which are planned in the first phase.
Commenting on why they chose Prozone as a partner, chief executive David Fischel who along with senior director John Abel sits on Prozone's board said, "Liberty's commitment to every investment is very high and it likes to work closely with its partner. We choose Provogue because both the parties genuinely complement each other."
While Liberty brings to the table its financial strength and international expertise in developing shopping centres, Prozone along with its financial contribution will provide its knowledge of the local Indian market and shoppers.
Nikhil Chaturvedi, MD, Provogue said, "We want to operate shopping centres in the long-term because that is the only way to create a successful format through which retailers and consumers can derive long lasting benefit. In Liberty International we have found a partner who shares this vision."
Prozone has already signed up leading retailers like Shoppers' Stop, HyperCity, Reliance Retail, Westside, Pantaloon, Lifestyle, Fame Adlabs and Cinemax as anchor clients along with a host of other national store brands and restaurant chains.
With a target of close to six million sq ft of retail space by end 2008, four other malls are planned in Mysore, Thane, Surat and Indore.