The mall was acquired by a private company owned by one of the original founders of Burgess Rawson.

One of the founders of commercial real estate agency Burgess Rawson has emerged as the vendor of a Geelong mall that has been listed for more than $20m, Green Street News can reveal.

Property records show Bell Park Plaza at 218-222 Anakie Road is owned by Merost Pty Ltd, an investment vehicle co-directed and co-owned by Chris Burgess and Pamela Burgess.

Chris Burgess started Burgess Rawson in 1975 with fellow agent Gerald Rawson, creating one of the country’s most successful commercial real estate brands.

The firm is best known for its highly popular portfolio auctions held in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane over three consecutive days once every six or so weeks. This week, Burgess Rawson will host its 175th series of portfolio auctions.

Chris Burgess and Rawson sold out of Burgess Rawson in about 2012. Ownership of the firm is now split between six agents: managing director Ingrid Filmer (who has the largest stake) and directors Jamie Perlinger, Adam Thomas, Shaun Venables, Darren Beehag and Raoul Holderhead.

Since selling out of their firm, both co-founders have maintained a low-profile. Chris Burgess did not respond to a request for comment.

Property records show the Burgesses, through Merost, paid $5.6m to acquire Bell Park Plaza in 2014. In 2017, the 4,243 sq m neighbourhood centre underwent a major redevelopment.

The fully leased mall is anchored by a 1,591 sq m Aldi supermarket, as well as retailers including Cellarbrations, Cheap as Chips, a pharmacy and a medical centre. The shopping centre charges gross specialty rents of $348/sq m.

Aldi has a 15-year lease with 10-year options through 2052, according to the listing.

The mall is on a 11,350 sq m site with direct access to Anakie Road. It has 143 car spaces.

Burgess Rawson’s Raoul Holderhead, Shaun Venables and Zomart He, in conjunction with JLL’s Stuart Taylor, Tom Noonan and MingXuan Li, are handling the sale

The expressions of interest campaign concludes on April 3.

Green Street News