VRSA acquires 2 mn sqft North Country Mall for Rs 700 crore

Developer-operator of lifestyle shopping malls Virtuous Retail South Asia (VRSA) today said it has acquired 2 million sqft North Country mall in Punjab from Sun Apollo-Gumberg for Rs 700 crore.
With this acquisition, VRSA establishes its presence in north India, adding to its existing portfolio of community-centric centres VR Surat and VR Bangalore, the company said in a statement issued here.
The acquisition for Rs 700 crore also includes paying down debt, it said.
"The acquisition is in line with the company's rapid, nation-wide, expansion strategy through both ground up development and acquisition of existing, high quality assets. Our mall in Chennai will also become operational in the fourth quarter of 2017," VSRA Chairman of the Board Sid Yog said.

VRSA's India retail portfolio now stands at 5.5 million sqft.
Commenting on the deal, its executive managing director Rohit George said, "this acquisition immediately adds one million sqft of high quality retail space to our existing leasable portfolio. We look forward to working with existing and new retail partners."
He further said this acquisition, combined with VR Chennai, also enables VRSA to simultaneously offer retailers, two new retail developments of scale, in key metropolitan markets, at a time when quality retail space is scarce and the economy is poised to grow strongly.