Bain Capital, 11North Partners Buy Retail Center Portfolio for $395M

More Publix-anchored retail centers have traded hands as grocery-focused properties continue to draw attention from investors.

Bain Capital and 11North Partners acquired a portfolio of 10 retail centers across Florida and South Carolina — seven of which are anchored by the Florida-based grocery chain — from PGIM Real Estate for approximately $395 million, according to a Monday announcement.

The 10 properties — nine of which are located in the Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Tampa and Palm Beach submarkets and one of which is in Charleston — cover a total of more than 1 million square feet and have a current occupancy of around 93 percent, the announcement said.

The shopping centers included in the deal are Florida’s Sawgrass Square, Plantation Promenade, Miramar Commons, Rolling Oaks Commons, Promenade at Poinciana, Solivita Marketplace, New Tampa Center, Lake Worth Plaza and Garden Shops at Boca, as well as South Carolina’s Point Hope Commons, according to the announcement.

In addition to Publix, the retail portfolio features tenants Bank of America, Chipotle, Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, Jersey Mike’s and McDonald’s.

“This transaction represents a compelling opportunity to embed our platform in strong, in-demand communities that are benefiting from significant demographic shifts across the Southeast, including lifestyle migration and an aging population,” Brian Harper, founder and managing partner of 11North, said in a statement.

“We’re thrilled to expand our presence in Florida through the acquisition of this high-performing portfolio anchored by Publix and complemented by a mix of top-tier national retailers,” Harper added.

JLL, which brokered the transaction, will take over management of the retail centers from Florida-based firm Southeast Centers. Spokespeople for JLL and PGIM did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

News of the deal comes after Bain and 11North bought three retail centers in Oklahoma City for approximately $212 million in June, with anchor tenants including Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s, as Commercial Observer previously reported.

Bain and 11North formed a joint venture in April 2024 to buy retail assets focused on grocery tenants, as average grocery sales volumes are about $1,000 per square foot across the JV’s current platform, Harper said.

“We are excited to continue building a differentiated and high-quality portfolio alongside our partners at 11North in markets where we have long-term conviction,” Martha Kelley, managing director at Bain, said in a statement.

While investors are certainly looking to acquire grocery-anchored shopping centers, some grocery tenants are doing it themselves.

Publix has spent millions to acquire retail centers where it is an anchor tenant, most recently buying a strip mall along Biscayne Boulevard in Florida’s Miami-Dade County in December for $40 million, CO reported. That came after the grocery chain bought two retail properties in Davie, Fla., from PGIM for a combined $82.9 million in September.

Isabelle Durso can be reached at idurso@commercialobserver.com.