Hammerson has announced that Simon Travis has been appointed to the role of Group Investment Director & Managing Director Premium Outlets.
In this new position, Travis will take on responsibility for Hammerson’s premium outlets division in addition to his existing Investment responsibilities.
He will assume his new role once CFO and current Premium Outlets MD, Timon Drakesmith, has left the business, and will report directly to CEO David Atkins.
Travis joined Hammerson in 1998, and has held a number of roles including Investment Manager and Business Development Director. He joined the Group Executive Committee as Group Investment Director in 2018. Simon led the early phases of Hammerson’s expansion in premium outlets and was instrumental in the establishment of VIA outlets in 2014.
Premium outlets now accounts for 27% of Hammerson’s property portfolio, and the business continued to outperform in the first half of 2019. Both Value Retail and VIA Outlets saw a double digit uplift in brand sales in the six months to 30 June 2019, as well as 7% and 8% increases in footfall respectively.
Hammerson currently has interests in 20 outlets in 14 European countries, offering 450,000 sq m of retail space for international luxury and fashion brands.
RPA Perspective Given the business’ strategic focus on debt reduction, Hammerson has also appointed Bruce Nutman to the role of Senior Investment Manager, reporting to Simon Travis. Bruce has specialised in retail investment for over 20 years, most recently at leading industry adviser Time Retail Partners.
David Atkins, Hammerson Chief Executive, said: “Simon’s appointment will strengthen our already talented premium outlets team, and his experience and leadership will be invaluable as the business seeks to create further value for its guests, brand partners, employees and investors. Premium outlets continues to deliver exceptional results, and is well placed to take advantage of the broader trends we are seeing in the market, such as the growth in shopping-tourism, and the popularity of off-price luxury.”
VIA Outlets, the joint outlet shopping venture between Hammerson, APG, Value Retail and Meyer Bergman, in February reported that total brand sales has increased to €1.07 billion in 2018.
The outlet shopping destinations, located in nine European countries, attract more than 30 million customers across its 11 centres last year, an increase of 3.5%. The total portfolio now has more than 1,100 stores, includes 139 new store openings last year, which has resulted in brand sales increasing by 9.3%, as well as the average spend per consumer rising by 5.6% year-on-year.
VIA Outlets spent €29 million last year to remodel three of its outlets, Hede Fashion Outlet in Gothenburg (Sweden) where a new extension will open in October 2019, Sevilla Fashion Outlet (Spain) and Wroclaw Fashion Outlet.
In addition, in Q4 2019, significant remodelling works will commence at Vila do Conde Porto Fashion Outlet (Portugal) and Zweibrücken Fashion Outlet.
As well as remodelling, VIA Outlets has a special focus on increasing EU and non-EU tourists to visit the centres as part of their holiday, as research reveals that tourists spend more than the average guest. To improve the shopping experience for non-EU shoppers, onsite tax refund offices have been opened in eight of VIA Outlets’ centres, offering visitors services that are normally only available at airports.
VIA Outlets was founded in 2014 and owns 11 premium fashion outlets across Europe in Amsterdam, Prague, Lisbon, Gothenburg, Zurich, Palma, Oslo, Seville, Porto, Wroclaw and Zweibrucken. It offers more than 1,100 stores across 260,000 square metres including Michael Kors, Adidas, Calvin Klein, Nike, Levi’s, Tommy Hilfiger, Superdry, Puma and Hugo Boss.
