Sonae Sierra recruits head of leasing from Savills following acquisition of eight shopping centres in Spain

Portuguese shopping centre operator Sonae Sierra has appointed Spaniard Pablo Buendía as head of leasing business development. Buendía will work within the joint venture the company shares with Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), as he announced on LinkedIn.

The appointment comes one month after Sonae Sierra announced a change in its executive leadership. Luís Mota Duarte, previously deputy chief executive officer, will become the new CEO from January 2027. He replaces Fernando Guedes de Oliveira, who has led the company since 2010.

Buendía joins from international property consultancy Savills, where he had been leasing director for shopping centres in Spain since May 2025. He has nearly 20 years of experience in retail space leasing. Prior to Savills, he was leasing director at Spanish shopping centre operator Gentalia and at the Spanish subsidiary of the British group Intu. He also held roles at Orion Capital Managers and Metrovacesa, and was involved in the leasing of Puerto Venecia in Zaragoza.

The joint venture between Sonae Sierra and the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund manager signed an agreement on July 31 to acquire eight shopping centres in Spain from Sociedad General Inmobiliaria de España (LSGIE), owned by the Balkany family.

The transaction has a gross value of approximately 1.5 billion euros and comprises more than 250,000 square metres of gross leasable area. NBIM retains 92 percent of the portfolio, while Sonae Sierra holds the remaining 8 percent alongside the direct management of the centres. These properties are Gran Plaza 2, Plaza Norte 2, Plaza Río 2, La Vaguada, Plaza Moraleja 2 and Plaza Loranca 2 in Madrid; Gran Vía 2 in Barcelona; and Plaza Mar 2 in Alicante.

At the time of the announcement, the acquisition was subject to approval by competition authorities, with completion scheduled for the fourth quarter of this year.