Liverpool Acquires a Shopping Center and Plans to Increase Its Investments in Mexico by Up to 39% in 2024

El Puerto de Liverpool has completed the majority purchase of Altama City Center in Tampico, Tamaulipas. This transaction, which was carried out on March 15, is part of the company's expansion plans in Mexico. This year, the department store chain will increase its investments by 28% to 39% compared to 2023. The funds will be allocated to realigning its retail, industrial, and logistics portfolio and enhancing its technological infrastructure.

According to data from SiiLA, the occupancy of spaces by El Puerto de Liverpool (including Suburbia) in shopping centers in major national retail markets increased by 15% last year, accumulating about 800,000 square meters. This is complemented by part of the more than 40,000 square meters of Gross Leasable Area (GLA) of Altama City Center, formerly owned by GT Global (previously Grupo Tampico). In addition, in 2023, the company added almost 5,000 square meters of industrial space to its portfolio, encompassing a GLA close to 400,000 square meters.

In the Mexican retail market, Liverpool is the largest tenant of anchor stores, representing 25% of the GLA of these large establishments that attract a high volume of customers and generate constant traffic. Currently, the company, led by Graciano Guichard Gonzalez (chairman of the board) and Enrique Guijosa Hidalgo (CEO), has 124 Liverpool units and 187 Suburbia units spread across 87 Mexican cities.

Investments and Expansion in 2024

Regarding its projections for this year, El Puerto de Liverpool plans a capital investment of between 11 and 12 billion pesos (between 650 and 710 million dollars). Of these resources, 35% will be allocated to strengthening its Arco Norte logistics platform. A similar proportion will be invested in opening new stores and significant remodels, including the expansion of Liverpool Metepec and improvements in the units in Santa Fe (Mexico City) and Leon (Guanajuato).

It is important to note that the supply chain of the department store firm is concentrated mainly in the conurbation area of the Valley of Mexico, where approximately 86% of its industrial GLA is focused on distribution and logistics operations, both last-mile and regional/national in scope, facilitating efficient movement of goods to sales points and final consumers. In this sense, strengthening its infrastructure in the CTT submarket (Cuautitlan, Tultitlan, and Tepotzotlan) and Arco Norte, where it has a 230,000-square-meter industrial warehouse, is essential for optimizing its operations and meeting the growing demand for services and products.

Additionally, 10% of the investment will focus on improving technology and strengthening its digital business, which has shown sustained growth. This investment plan represents an increase of 28% to 39% compared to the 8,619 million pesos (about 510 million dollars) invested in 2023.

Looking further ahead, Liverpool anticipates maintaining a robust level of investment, projecting disbursements of between 10 and 11 billion pesos (between 590 and 650 million dollars) for 2025.

For more information on performance and trends in the Mexican retail market, explore SiiLA REsource or contact us at contacto@siila.com.mx.