TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mori Trust Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Minato Ward, Tokyo; President: Miwako Date) announces that the Company established its US subsidiary Mori America LLC on November 7, 2016 with the aim of promoting overseas investment business in the US. It also concluded a sale and purchase agreement for two office buildings in Boston, Massachusetts, on November 15, 2016. In future, we are scheduled to acquire the buildings, effective January 5, 2017, after completing the process for such acquisition.
We announced the medium- and long-term vision “Advance 2027” in June of this year when the new president took office. Based on this vision, we are conducting business with an eye to making total investments on the order of 800 billion yen. We set investments in overseas real estate as a key business strategy in the Vision in an attempt to capture business opportunities overseas and build a stable asset portfolio that can ride out a global economic change.
Following the policy of “Advance 2027,” we have decided to establish a subsidiary with the aim of promoting the overseas investment business in the US in earnest and, as the first overseas investment project in the Vision, to acquire two office buildings with a high operational rate in the Back Bay District, which is a popular location for offices in Boston.
Mori Trust Group owns 124 real properties for management and leasing, including offices, hotels and residences, primarily in central Tokyo. Recently, we started construction of the Tokyo World Gate (a total floor area of about 2,150,000 square feet), which is the first project accredited as an architectural structure for National Strategy Urban Planning. In addition to domestic projects like this, we will also pursue a policy of promoting investments in real estate in the US. We intend to expand the total amount of investments overseas to between 100 billion yen and 200 billion yen in the future.
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[Comment from President] |
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President and Chief Executive Officer MORI TRUST CO., LTD. |
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Miwako Date |
| I am delighted to have taken the first practical step toward promoting our Overseas Business in Boston, an international city that is also called “America’s Birthplace.” Our action plan is described in the medium- and long-term vision “Advance 2027,” which was announced when I assumed the presidency. |
| Similarly in Japan, the Mori Trust Group has placed importance on locations and quality from the perspective of selection and concentration in its business. I am quite excited to see a larger stage unfold with the addition of these properties ‒ which are situated in a coveted prime area in the US and have an extremely high reputation for their functionality, design and other aspects ‒ to our portfolio. |
| Going forward, I am determined to operate and manage these properties in a manner that lives up to their history from the customer perspective, thereby protecting their value and contributing to the community. |
1. Outline of Properties to be Acquired
Boston, where
the above properties are located, is the largest city in Massachusetts
in the northeastern US. Boston is one of America’s most prominent
cosmopolitan cities and is rich in history and culture, in addition to
being called “America’s Birthplace.” The area has some of the world’s
most prestigious universities, such as Harvard University and
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Along with a cluster of
cutting-edge medical institutions, Boston is a center of education and
medicine in the US. In addition, the city is a popular tourist
destination for its cityscape, with historic towns and modern buildings
combined in harmony, and for its reputation as a safe city. The business
areas are concentrated in the Financial District with many high-rise
buildings, where a number of banks and other financial institutions are
located; the Back Bay District, with its high-end offices, residences
and entertainment facilities nearby; and the Sea Port District, where
there is an increasing number of urban development projects in recent
years. These districts form a dynamic international city that attracts
companies and entrepreneurs mainly from the high-tech industry.
The properties to be acquired by this agreement are located in the Back Bay District, which is a popular office area with exclusive fashion boutiques, restaurants, hotels and residences also found in the vicinity. The properties are two buildings with a total rentable floor space of about 825,000 square feet, a complex of a Class A modern high-rise building, rare in this area, and an over 100 year-old historical building, indicating the high value of a stable asset.
10 St. James Avenue won “BOMA Boston 2016 TOBY (the Outstanding Building of the Year) & Industry Awards,” one of the greatest programs in the US to recognize commercial real estate, and have garnered an extremely high reputation for their function, design and other aspects.
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(1) Acquired Property |
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Property |
10 St. James Avenue | 75 Arlington Street | ||
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Property |
10 St. James Avenue, Boston, MA02116 |
75 Arlington Street, Boston,
MA02116 |
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Rentable Area |
565,793 square feet | 258,979 square feet | ||
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Number of |
19 (plus a four-level below-grade
parking garage) |
10 (plus a basement level) | ||
| Year Built | 2000 | 1913 (renovated 2009-2013) | ||
(2) Schedule
January 5, 2017: Settlement of Payment and Transfer of
Properties
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2. Outline of Overseas Subsidiary |
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| (1) Company Name: MORI America LLC | ||
| (2) Member: MORI TRUST CO., LTD. | ||
| (3) Address: | 2711 Centerville Road, Suite 400, City of Wilmington, | |
| County of New Castle, Delaware 19808 U.S.A. | ||
| (4) Establishment Date: November 7, 2016 | ||
| (5) Line of Business: | The US Headquarters for ownership, leasing and their related operations of real estate. | |
About Mori Trust Group
The Mori
Trust Group originated in the Mori Group, which was founded by
Taikichiro Mori, and has been in business over 60 years. Current
Chairman and CEO Akira Mori, the third son of the founder, created the
Mori Trust Group, a major developer in Japan. Since then, the Group has
been engaged in the businesses of real estate development, hotels and
resorts, and investment. In June 2016, Miwako Date, the granddaughter of
Taikichiro Mori and the daughter of Akira Mori, became President and
Chief Executive Officer to take over operations. Date formulated the
medium- and long-term vision and has pushed forward with the Group’s
diverse operations.
Real Estate Development Business
As a major real estate
developer in Japan, the Mori Trust Group owns 124 facilities for
management and leasing with a total floor area of about 15,930,000
square feet (including offices, hotels, residences and commercial
complexes) in prime locations in the Tokyo metropolitan area and across
the nation.
One of its ongoing projects is construction of a
38-story complex in Toranomon in central Tokyo, where numerous
international offices, residences and commercial facilities are
clustered. “The Tokyo World Gate” with a floor area of about 2,150,000
square feet is a complex containing offices, an international hotel,
apartments with hotel-like services, exclusive residences for freehold,
and a concierge service to facilitate the daily life of foreigners. It
is under construction and is scheduled to be completed in March 2020.
Furthermore, development of large complexes is planned in the Akasaka
and Shinagawa areas in central Tokyo.
Hotels & Resorts Business
The Mori Trust Group has
developed, owned and managed 21 hotels and resorts with a total of about
3,800 guest rooms nationwide.
The Group is known as a business
operator that has pioneered attracting international hotel brands to
Japan.
Furthermore, the Group is the biggest Marriot Group hotel
owner in Japan, which owns, manages and operates 11 existing, rebranded,
and newly developing hotels under the brand name of Marriot
International.
Regarding hotel projects currently underway, ten new hotels are planned primarily in areas that are among the most popular cities and regions in Japan, such as Ginza, Hokkaido, Nara and Okinawa.
Investment Business
The Group is recognized as a company
that contributed to the creation of the REIT market in Japan, and has
listed a comprehensive REIT on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE). We are
working to list a second REIT that specializes in hotels on the TSE.
Financial Results
The consolidated financial position of
Mori Trust Group as of March 31, 2016 comprised total net assets of 1.3
trillion yen (market value), equity ratio 31% (book value).
The
Group posted, for the term ended March 2016, 163.0 billion yen in
operating revenue, 41.2 billion yen in operating income, and 34.0
billion yen in net income.
The Group forecasts 148.0 billion yen in
operating revenue, 30.0 billion yen in operating income, and 57.0
billion yen in net income for the term ending March 2017.
Medium- and Long-Term Vision “Advance 2027”
Following
current President Miwako Date assuming the position of president, the
Group announced a medium- and long-term vision, which emphasizes that
the Group is prepared to make investments on the order of 800 billion
yen in real properties and projects at home and overseas by 2027 while
retaining its current level of owned capital rate, which is high by the
standards of Japanese developers.
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President of Mori Trust Co., Ltd |
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Miwako Date |
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| Mori Trust Co., Ltd. | President and CEO | |
| Mori Trust Hotels & Resorts Co., Ltd. | President and CEO | |
| Mampei Hotel Co., Ltd. | Chair and CEO | |
| Keidanren, Japan Business Federation: Permanent Secretary | ||
| Japan Hotel Association: | Director | |
| /Chair of the Committee to stimulate Inbound Tourism | ||
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Japan Association of Corporate Executives: Secretary |
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and other roles |
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After graduating from Keio University’s graduate school, Date joined a
major consulting firm. In 1998, she joined the Mori Trust Co., Ltd., and
in June 2016, became the President and CEO of the Mori Trust Co. Her
father is Akira Mori, current Chairman and CEO.
While overseeing a
number of large-scale real estate development projects in central Tokyo,
Miwako Date steered the hotels & resorts business into bringing in a
number of international hotels including: CONRAD TOKYO; Shangri-La Hotel
Tokyo; Tokyo Marriott Hotel; Suiran, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Kyoto;
The Westin Sendai; Courtyard by Marriott Tokyo Station; and Courtyard by
Marriott Shin-Osaka Station.
