Mar 11, 2015

Dallas Market Center sold to Crow Holdings; management not to change

Dallas Market Center announced Wednesday, March 11, that Crow Holdings will acquire the interest in certain real estate at Dallas Market Center owned by CNL Lifestyle Properties, Inc. The agreement, which involves more than 5 million square feet of property at Dallas Market Center’s campus, includes the World Trade Center, Dallas Trade Mart, International Trade Plaza, and Market Hall. The acquisition is expected to close within 90 days.

The management company — Market Center Management Company, Ltd., an operating company with a five-decade history and owned by Crow Holdings — will continue to manage the Dallas Market Center business, including the tenant relationships and trade shows.

Crow Holdings is the diversified group of investment companies that owns and directs the investments of the Trammell Crow family and its investment partners. Crow developed Dallas Market Center beginning in 1957, and the Crow family has maintained an active role in the management of the market center since its founding. CNL Lifestyle Properties, Inc., a real estate investment trust (REIT) that focuses on demographically driven properties, has held a majority interest in property at Dallas Market Center’s campus since 2005. Once the acquisition closes, Crow Holdings will be the sole owner of Dallas Market Center.

“Our company and its shareholders have been quite fortunate to enjoy a terrific and very constructive relationship with Crow Holdings and MCMC through our investment in the Dallas Market Center,” said Stephen H. Mauldin, president and CEO of CNL Lifestyle Properties. “As the life cycle of our REIT draws to a close and we move to monetize our holdings, we remain wholly confident in the current and future performance of the Dallas Market Center as an industry leading enterprise.”

“Crow Holdings is a strong equity partner with an unmatched understanding and support of our business,” said Dallas Market Center President and CEO Bill Winsor. “The MCMC management team, together with Crow Holdings, has a five decade history of developing and managing more market center square footage on more continents than any other company. We will continue to work together to improve the Dallas marketplace and to create new events, attracting both buyers and exhibitors from around the world.

About Dallas Market Center

Founded in 1957, Dallas Market Center is the world’s most complete wholesale marketplace. Within its marketplace of more than 5 million square feet, retailers from around the globe source products ranging from home furnishings, gifts, decorative accessories and lighting to textiles, fashion accessories and men’s, western, women’s and children’s apparel. With more than 50 markets each year attended by more than 200,000 retail buyers from all 50 states and 85 countries,

About Crow Holdings

Crow Holdings encompasses multiple operating businesses and signature properties. These operating businesses include Crow Holdings Capital — a registered investment advisor (RIA) comprised of private equity real estate funds and a diversified investment advisory firm — as well as Trammell Crow Residential (TCR) and Crow Holdings Industrial. The company’s signature properties include the Old Parkland Campus, the Anatole Hotel and Dallas Market Center — all located in Dallas — as well as the Windsor Court Hotel in New Orleans and the International Trade Mart in Brussels, Belgium. Although Crow Holdings’ foundation is deeply rooted in real estate development, the company made a strategic decision in 1988 to diversify a substantial portion of its portfolio into diversified investments. This provided a stable foundation for the company’s current and future initiatives, as well as an opportunity to share its decades of lessons learned with investors, partner families, business partners and associates.