Sectors

Retail

We have a deep and wide knowledge of this sector knowledge from long involvement with shopping centre developments, management and leasing through to devising innovative arrangements in new town and retail centres. This allows us to provide commercially sound, up-to-date insight across a wide range of complex legal issues affecting those participating in the retail market. The diverse relationships we have with clients across the sector gives us strategic and commercial insight that lead to advice of the highest quality.

Our expertise:

Our deep and broad experience from a number of perspectives - landlord and tenant, developer and investor, funder and borrower - allows us to offer a unique perspective that matches whatever client needs arise in the retail sector.  We advise across the full range of services, from the provision of strategic advice on bidding or selling multi-million euro assets, through to restructuring, diligence, leasing, service charge and management structure design, joint ventures and finance.

‘The team handled a number of significant [real estate] retail mandates.’
Legal 500 2018

Key areas:

  • Set up and structure for new retail schemes
  • Acquisition, sale and finance of individual or bundled retail assets
  • Managing large, diverse real estate portfolios for different international clients
  • Sale of multi-million euros retail assets in competitive situation for lenders on enforcement, receivers or institutions (whether bundled, single or by way of loan sale / JV)


Key highlights include advising:

  • Argos on its Irish property portfolio since it first came to Ireland.
  • Hines on its recent purchase of the Grafton Collection in Dublin’s city centre.
  • McDonald’s on its Irish property portfolio of over 80 restaurants since it first came to Ireland in the 1970s, including franchising arrangements.
  • St Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre for many years as well as acting on the recent sale of a substantial stake to a new investor.
  • Whitewater Shopping Centre (the largest regional shopping centre in Ireland).
  • Hammerson on leasing and other legal services critical to the functions of the Dundrum Town Centre.
  • Marlet on a €40m financing with Bank of Ireland in respect of Marlet’s acquisition of Belgard Retail Park, M1 Retail Park and Poppyfield Retail Park. 
  • Hines on its purchase of the Grafton Collection in Dublin’s city centre. 
  • McDonald’s on the majority of its Irish property portfolio since it first came to Ireland in the 1970s, including franchising arrangements. 
  • St Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre for many years as well as acting on the recent sale of a substantial stake to a new investor. 
  • SportsDirect in its bid for the “Elverys” chain of sports stores in Ireland and in respect of proceedings brought against Heatons, which involved highly novel competition law issues. 
  • Whitewater Shopping Centre (the largest regional shopping centre in Ireland). 
  • BWG on the: 
    • acquisition of 4 Aces Wholesale Limited. 
    • acquisition of Corrib Foods. 
    • acquisition of Heaney Meats Catering Co Limited, a large supplier of meat products to the Irish food service sector. 
    • acquisition of ADM Londis plc. 
    • acquisition of Keatings Newtown Limited. 
    • acquisition of Morris Brothers Distributors.

Key Contacts

View all our Expertise areas