Our Avenue founders shared their insights with Expertise magazine. Read the full interview here:
The retail real estate investment market in Belgium has seen many highlights this year, driven by megadeals and highly active local family offices. According to real estate advisor Avenue, the second half of the year promises to be equally dynamic, with a revival of larger transactions on the high streets. Large foreign funds, however, are currently keeping their distance from Belgium. – Martijn Reviers
This October marks five years since Hendrik Evens, Stijn Thomas, and Kenneth Verloo founded Avenue. The startup quickly established itself as a key player in the retail real estate investment market, and Avenue has since become one of the leading agencies in the leasing market as well. Soon, the team will move to a new office in Antwerp’s Zuid district, within the new development The Gallery, right next to the MHKA museum.
“With the transactions still in our pipeline, 2025 is set to become our best year yet,” the three founders emphasize, reflecting on the first half of the year. Recently, the team assisted private holding Roca Invest in acquiring B-Park in Bruges and De Vlier in selling the Frunparks in Auvelais and Izegem. This confirms the rise of a new generation of private investors joining established names that have made notable moves in the market.
Will institutional players remain cautious for much longer?
Hendrik Evens: “2024 was undoubtedly our most challenging year so far. We felt the impact of nearly every external factor: COVID, the war in Ukraine, Trump, rising interest rates. Much of that has now settled, and since the start of this year, we’ve seen a different dynamic. Confidence has returned. Private investors are reigniting the market, often responding more swiftly than large funds. Institutional players are active again but are currently more on the seller’s side than the buyer’s. Family offices are setting the tone in Belgium more than ever, especially compared to abroad.”
Stijn Thomas: “Colleagues abroad often tell us how absent the private market is there, resulting in yields that are 100 to 200 basis points higher since only institutional investors are active. Here, yields remain sharp precisely because of these active family investors. The shift is significant: family offices used to buy in the €5–10 million range, then €20 million, and today they are comfortably participating in transactions of €50 million and above. For these parties, real estate is a way to secure capital while generating returns in an unstable economy. Real estate remains the ultimate safe haven for them, which also inspires others to look at retail real estate. It’s our role to guide this private capital into the market.”
Does the Belgian market still need institutional funds to generate volume?
H. Evens: “We have a highly active, capable, and professional internal private market. But I’d put it this way: we truly need these family offices.”
Kenneth Verloo: “And let’s be clear, institutional investors have not fully stepped away from the buyer’s side. We’ve seen Wereldhave Belgium recently acquire the Knauf shopping centers in Luxembourg, Cibus entering the market with the acquisition of Forum Estates, and Mitiska REIM planning to acquire the Cora/Galimmo portfolio. This shows institutional players still play a role and contribute to the larger volume in our investment market.”
So the foreign institutions are the ones stepping back?
K. Verloo: “Indeed, the classic German and French investment funds are less active here, and Belgium loses out to other countries in this respect. If these funds want to buy today, it’s more often in Spain or neighboring countries. One disadvantage remains the three-year break clause in Belgian commercial leases, which many foreign parties see as an obstacle. Combined with higher yields and longer leases available elsewhere, it’s logical they look beyond Belgium. Our yields remain sharp, and lease terms are often too short, requiring in-depth market knowledge and confidence. For pan-European investors, the calculation is straightforward, making their absence understandable.”
How is the high street dynamic evolving?
S. Thomas: “We expect larger reference transactions in the second half of the year. A year or two ago, it was tough to sell a €5 million inner-city file, but today deals are moving much more smoothly. The momentum is here.”
H. Evens: “Certain cities stand out in inner-city markets: Antwerp, Brussels, and Ghent lead, followed by Bruges and Knokke, where we continue to sell at sharp yields. Cities just below that tier, like Leuven and Hasselt, still see healthy demand but are slightly less favored by investors. Prime high street yields are around 4.5%, with exceptional cases dropping closer to 4%. For retail parks, it’s the same: prime food-anchored retail parks still yield well below 6%, around 5.25%–5.50%. Larger volumes range between 6% and 7.5%, depending on the quality.”
Does the wave of bankruptcies impact sentiment around retail real estate?
K. Verloo: “That wave seems to have passed, and the market has stabilized. Top locations are quickly relet, often to strong names. Antwerp, for instance, has been a positive retail story recently, with the world’s largest Zara on the Meir, Lululemon’s flagship, and the first Selected store—signals with real impact, helping us engage investors.”
H. Evens: “Yet the trend of the past two years remains: closing deals requires persistence to the end. Files can still go in all directions even after an agreement, often due to banks and EPC certificates. A single bank remark about an EPC issue can push a deal five steps back. Everything hinges on details: solar panels, charging stations, heating systems, and more.”
Looking back, how do you view Avenue’s first five years?
K. Verloo: “We’re proud of what we’ve achieved, navigating challenges and evolving personally and as a business. Unlike in larger structures where decisions were made for us, we now steer the ship ourselves, making every choice and investment, which is challenging but deeply rewarding. We are far from ‘done’ and continue to raise the bar each year, as seen in the launch of our residential department and our commitment to internal training and growth in our new Antwerp office.”
S. Thomas: “The past twelve months marked significant progress, shifting from startup energy to a clear strategy. This professional approach is visible in everything we do, from our office and recruitment to how candidates see us. The challenges often lie not in the startup phase but in scaling up—adding structure and sharpening processes takes energy but is crucial.”
K. Verloo: “We continue to grow steadily in retail investments and aim to strengthen our position in securing mandates from institutional sellers. Our out-of-town agency is now a market leader, and we plan to further develop our inner-city agency with a strong focus on market share and quality, leveraging the expertise we’ve built and the top talent we’ve attracted. We hold many ambitions, and we are determined to realize them step by step.”