KATY, Texas (Covering Katy News) – A New York company, Brixmor Property Group, just bought LaCenterra at Cinco Ranch for $223 million, they announced July 28.
The popular upscale, outdoor shopping center covers 34 acres on Cinco Ranch Boulevard at Highway 99 and sees more than 5 million shoppers every year.
Why Brixmor Wanted It
Brixmor has a simple game plan: buy up lots of shopping centers in the same area so they can run them cheaper and control more of the market.
"The acquisition of LaCenterra At Cinco Ranch furthers our clustering strategy in a key market and broadens our tenancy profile and retailer relationships, providing a vibrant source of incremental and relevant demand, as we continue to evolve the merchandise mix across our transformed portfolio," said Mark Horgan, Brixmor's executive vice president and chief investment officer.
That means having LaCenterra gives them access to upscale brands like Sephora and Warby Parker that they can now bring to their other shopping centers too.
Brixmor's "clustering strategy" means buying multiple shopping centers in the same area to run them more efficiently and become the dominant player in that market.
The strategy helps Brixmor:
- Share knowledge across nearby properties
- Save money on management and maintenance
- Build stronger relationships with national retailers
- Coordinate advertising across nearby centers
- Get better deals with contractors and service providers
Owning multiple centers in one area helps them:
- Learn what works and copy it at other locations
- Get bulk discounts on maintenance and repairs
- Convince big retailers to open multiple stores
- Run joint advertising campaigns
- Negotiate better deals with everyone from landscapers to security companies
This purchase gives Brixmor 31 shopping centers around Houston, making it their third-biggest market after Florida and California. You might know some of their other local spots like West U Marketplace or the shopping centers at Bay Forest, Beltway South, and Tanglewilde.
About Brixmor
Brixmor Property Group is a real estate investment trust that owns about 360 outdoor shopping centers across the country - that's roughly 64 million square feet of stores and restaurants. You can buy stock in the company on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol BRX.
They're doing pretty well - 94% of their spaces have tenants, and 91% of their smaller shops are occupied.
Fun fact: LaCenterra was ranked the sixth-best shopping experience in America back in 2021.