FPG Group buys Cape precinct with help from Nedbank property bank

NEDBANK Property Finance has granted R323m to FPG Group for the purchase of the Cape Gate Lifestyle precinct from Hyprop, a specialist shopping centre owner.

The acquisition has 30,000m² of gross lettable area (GLA) which includes a lifestyle and décor centre, Engen service station, drive-through Steers and KFC outlets and a Toyota dealership.

The six properties are located along the Okavango Road in Durbanville, Cape Town, adjacent to the Cape Gate regional mall and in close proximity to Makro development, which is partly owned by Nedbank.

Nedbank Property Finance’s regional executive for the Cape, Richard Thomas, says that the bank was enthusiastic about funding the development “not only because of its long-term relationship with the FPG group, but also because the properties are well located and tenanted by quality national tenants on long-term leases”.

“We have been the FPG group’s financier of choice for well over five years and we are proud to partner with them once again in this transaction. The group is an experienced retail operator and we feel sure that they will add value to this key retail property in Cape Town’s northern suburbs.”

The FPG group — then known as Foodprop — was established in 1989 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Foodworld Group, which was then the largest independent retail group in the Western Cape, consisting of 13 supermarkets and four wholesale outlets, which was sold to Shoprite.

Foodprop was created to build a property-owning entity to source new sites for its retail division and to build a diverse property portfolio to include the industrial and office sectors.

In 2006, the group concluded its largest single property development — the R300m The Claremont, which consisted of 322 apartments.

In 2013, the Group rebranded to become the FPG Group to reflect the broader focus across all property sectors, and also made its first international property acquisition in the UK.

FPG Properties has grown to include 38 properties, mainly in the retail sector, with limited exposure in the office, industrial and residential sectors. The portfolio comprises a GLA of more than 160,000m², of which more than 70% is occupied by national tenants.

Tenants of the lifestyle and décor centres include Super Spar, Virgin Active, Build-It Hardware and Postnet.

Thomas says Nedbank Property Finance continues its commitment to the sector by providing “agile and relevant” financial solutions that realise opportunities for quality retail property clients such as the FPG group.

In 2013, Foodprop rebranded to become the FPG Group to reflect its broader property focus

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