Zara founder Amancio Ortega is in talks to buy several US warehouses leased by international companies such as Amazon and FedEx for $905 million, Reuters reported. The investment arm of the Ortega family confirmed the report.
The emerging deal comes after in recent months Ortega purchased two distribution centers in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania for $35 million and $148 million, respectively. The Spanish newspaper “El Pais” even stated that the new properties are located in strategically important locations and are leased in long-term contracts to large companies such as Amazon, Fedex, Home Depot and Nestlé.
Ortega, 86, is the founder and controlling owner of fashion giant Inditex, which owns chains such as Zara, Brescia and Massimo Dutti. Ortega is considered one of the richest people in Europe and is in 23rd place on Forbes’ list of billionaires for 2022 with a fortune of 59.6 billion dollars. His investments are made through his investment arm mainly in real estate such as skyscrapers and office buildings around the world.
According to the company, they are currently looking for highly profitable properties with stable tenants for the medium and long term, so the warehouses meet all the requirements. In general, storage spaces have become a critical part of global supply chains, mainly against the background of the surge in online commerce and in view of the decrease in demand for commercial real estate.
Earlier this year, Ortega’s investment arm acquired a 64-story skyscraper in New York and the Royal Bank Plaza building in Toronto. In July, the company reported that the value of the real estate in its possession increased in 2021 by more than one billion euros to 15.2 billion euros.
For the six months to the end of July 2022, Inditex reported a 24.5% increase in sales to 14.8 billion euros, and a 41% jump in net profit to 1.8 billion euros.