Vidin Metelov, a private investor from Tucson purchased Oracle Village Plaza at 6251-6264 North Oracle Road in Tucson for[mepr-show rules=”58038″]$2.5 million ($207 PSF) from The Horvath Family Limited Partnership III, LLP and ABT, Inc. of Tucson (James G. Horvath, principal).

The 12,100 sq. ft. building is on a 75,829 sq. ft lot south of Orange Grove on Oracle Road, the center was 100% leased with four tenants when it sold: Sticky’s Smoke Shop, 7e Fit Spa, Joy Asian Market and Bikram’s Yoga Studio.

The purchase price included the transfer of OracleVillagePlaza, LLC to the new owner and Bank of the West in Tucson was the lender.

Rick Borane of the Volk Company in Tucson represented the buyer. Horvath, also a broker with Town West Realty was self-represented.

Horvath can be reached at (520) 615-7707. Borane should be contacted at (520) 326-3200.[/mepr-show]

Hong Kong attracted significantly more cross-border retailers than in any other city in 2012, making it the world’s most attractive retail market, according to a report by CBRE Global Research and Consulting. The firm annually maps the global footprint of 320 world retailers. These retailers targeted a wide range of locations in 2012 CBRE says, with 81% of the 208 cities surveyed seeing at least one new retailer entrant last year.

Hong Kong was by far the most sought-after city, with 51 new market entries from all sectors and not just the high-end fashion brands that have traditionally targeted that market. Followed by Germany with 41 new entrants, Ukraine with 38 and Brazil with 30 new entrants. Poland, in fifth place attracted 28 new entrants in eight cities, although Warsaw was by far the most significant target.

Canada was in joint sixth place with the United Arab Emirates, with all but four of the 25 new entrants in Canada originating from the U.S., an ongoing trend since the start of the recession with U.S. retailers targeting Canada because of its relatively strong retail growth and its close proximity to the U.S. home market.

These new entrants are principally from Europe, but also from the U.S., Japan and South Korea. Hong Kong provides an opportunity for retailers to capitalise on the emerging middle class population and tourists from mainland China. Hong Kong is often used as a launch pad for brands entering the region although increasingly retailers are entering Chinese cities directly. While luxury brands led the way in 2012, retailers from across the spectrum opened their first store in the city last year, including Pierre Cardin, Forever 21 and Cos, according to CBRE.

American retailers are by far the most global, according to the firm, with Italy, the U.K. and France making up the second tier of major exporters. Traditionally, U.S. retailers have focused on Asia and Western Europe markets, but increasingly they are targeting the Middle East (which made up 18% of new entrants by U.S. retailers in 2012), central and Eastern Europe (17%) and Latin America (10%). Retailers from Italy, the U.K. and France are focusing mainly on expansion into other European countries, although Asia is also a key target fro French and British retailers, according to Peter Gold, managing director of cross-border EMEA retail at CBRE.

Mature markets dominated retailers’ expansion plans last year, although five emerging markets made the top 20. Kiev was in second place, with 39 new entrants. São Paulo (with 25 new entrants), Iasi (with 19), Muscat (17) and Ho Chi Minh City (15) and New Delhi (14) also were important target markets fro retailers.

Notable by its absence from the Top 10 was China which attracted only four new retail entrants, including Ted Baker and Forever 21, even though there were around 100 new non-cross border entries in the 16 Chinese cities surveyed.

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High Sierra Theatres of Santa Fe, NM (Thomas Becker and Nick Sanchez, Partners) purchased the Desert Sky Cinema at 70 W   Duval Mine Road in Sahuarita, AZ for slightly under[mepr-show rules=”58038″]$1.4 million ($74 PSF). The 18,166 sq. ft. building with six-screens has all digital projectors and three 3-D theatres with a total 750 seating capacity.

Storyteller Theatres Corp. a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marwit Capital of Newport Beach, CA was the seller. Sanchez and Becker were both members of the Storyteller management team in New Mexico, Becker as Senior Vice-President and Sanchez as Director of Operations. Sanchez in this capacity was involved in the construction of the Sahuarita theatre in 2000. Both partners have extensive experience in the motion picture exhibition industry, with over 65 years combined experience.

Marwit Capital had been divesting of the Storyteller assets for several years and one day Sanchez and Becker decided to make inquiries on the Desert Sky Cinema for themselves. “It was their first choice,” according to Becker, “because Nick had helped build it, and because we both love the area and think one day of retiring there.” The local management and employees have all stayed on-board in the transition.

The purchase of Desert Sky Cinema is the first theatre in the company’s portfolio, as they continue to look for others in Arizona and the Southwest. High Sierra Theatres is an owner / operator / management company and plan to run the theater as much as possible as a community theater.

Becker explains, “In addition to the Hollywood box office films, we plan to bring back an ‘Encore Presentation of Metropolitan Opera’, and are working on a 42-week classic film festival to include Hitchcock, Welles and other classic films best viewed on the large screen. Although we haven’t reserved all the film names yet in the series, I can say, ‘Casablanca’ with Humphry Bogart and Ingrid Bergman will be in the lineup.”

The new owners encourage feedback from the community to bring as much alternative films as possible to the region and will also do private theater events with seating for 100 – 200 people. The theatre is also satellite equipped for additional special events.

Becker can be reached at (203) 943-1146 and Desert Sky Cinema should be contacted at (520) 393-1212.[/mepr-show]