JLL advises on 999-year blue-chip anchored retail mall in prime District 10

SINGAPORE, 5 JUNE 2023 –  JLL, as the exclusive advisor to DFI Retail Group (“DFI”) is pleased to present for sale a two-storey suburban retail mall, known as Jelita Shopping Centre, via an Expression of Interest (“EOI”) campaign at a guide price of S$85 million. This translates to approximately S$2,528 per square foot (“sf”) on Net Lettable Area (“NLA").  

The property sits on a land site spanning 46,616 sf, zoned ‘Commercial & Residential’ with a gross plot ratio of 2.2 based on the 2019 Masterplan. Situated within a prime landed residential enclave along Holland Road, the prominent mall, with an existing Gross Floor Area (“GFA”) of 46,427 sf and NLA of 33,621 sf, is anchored by blue-chip tenant Cold Storage. The popular 24-hour groceries retailer currently occupies the entire ground floor of the mall spanning c.20,000 sf, with other established tenants such as Starbucks, Delifrance, Guardian and Times Bookstore among others located on the second floor.

DFI currently owns and operates the property and are looking to divest alongside a long-term leaseback arrangement. There are two options for the sale and leaseback arrangement. Option A: DFI to leaseback the ground floor space as per the existing arrangement. Option B: DFI to leaseback the entire building. DFI is looking to divest the property to focus on their core expertise of operating supermarkets. There are also plans underway to upgrade the current Cold Storage supermarket and rebranding it to the new ‘CS Fresh’ to improve the supermarket experience for its loyal clientele.

Mr. Terry Wong, Senior Director of JLL’s Singapore Capital markets said, “This presents an attractive opportunity to acquire a core retail offering with defensive income at a palatable quantum that is backed by a blue-chip anchor tenant.” 

“Astute investors can embark on asset enhancement and potentially tenant repositioning on the second floor to rejuvenate the existing asset. Alternatively, prospective investors can also enjoy a stabilised return whilst land banking given the property’s rare 999-year tenure and look to further explore various redevelopment angles to tap on the unutilised plot ratio at an opportune time.” said Wong. 

With no other major competing supermarket of such scale within the vicinity, Jelita Shopping Centre, with 57 carpark lots will provide unrivalled convenience and is poised to be the key necessity retail and F&B offering, drawing residents in both the immediate and wider vicinity alike.  

“The property is expected to further draw crowds from an influx of new residents from upcoming residential projects such as ParkSuites Holland Grove, Ghim Moh Ascent and Dover Forest (Ulu Pandan Housing Estate). Collectively, more than 4,000 new residential units are expected to complete over the next five-to-six years.” Wong says. 

Additionally, the government has major plans to enhance road connectivity for townships along the rail corridor. Prospective investors may potentially explore various integration options of the retail mall with the rail corridor subject to approvals from relevant authorities. 

Recent transactions in the first quarter of 2023 include a 50% stake in NEX, a suburban mall sold at $3,274 psf on NLA to Frasers Centrepoint Trust and Fraser Property Limited. Other notable retail transactions in the fourth quarter of 2022 were Jurong Point and Swing By @ Thomson Plaza of $2,762 psf and $1,568 psf, respectively.

“Prime suburban retail assets with highly visible road frontage are rarely available for sale and are typically tightly held as these assets have generated resilient cash flows during the pandemic,” Wong says. 

The EOI campaign will close on Tuesday 18 July 2023 at 3pm, Singapore time.