Scentre Group owns the Westfield shopping centres across Australia and New Zealand. Here’s how it makes its money, and why shopping centres are busier than ever.
Scentre Group owns and operates Westfield shopping centres in Australia and New Zealand, and is one of the biggest property companies on the ASX.
Westfield was founded in Sydney in 1959 by Frank Lowy and John Saunders, who opened their first shopping centre in Blacktown. In 2014, Westfield split its business in two. Scentre took the Australian and New Zealand centres, while the overseas centres went to a separate company, later sold to Unibail-Rodamco. Scentre reports in Australian dollars, and its financial year runs to 31 December.
Rent
Scentre makes money from rent paid by businesses in its centres, from supermarkets and department stores to fashion stores, restaurants, gyms, medical centres and cinemas.
Leases often include fixed annual rent rises, giving it steady income growth. It also earns money from car parking, advertising and short-term leasing.
It owns many of its centres jointly with super funds and other investors, and earns fees for managing them.
Surviving online shopping
When online shopping took off, many people predicted the end of shopping centres. But Scentre’s centres, which are mostly large centres in busy areas, have stayed full.
It has changed the mix of tenants towards food, entertainment, health and services that people can’t get online, and centres are now busier than before the pandemic.
Funds from operations
Property trusts like Scentre measure their earnings using funds from operations, or FFO, which is the rent and other income they earn after costs, excluding changes in the value of their properties. Scentre pays most of it out to investors as distributions.
The risks
The risks include weaker consumer spending, retailers going out of business, higher interest rates, which raise its borrowing costs and reduce property values, and the continued growth of online shopping.
Elliott Rusanow is chief executive.
Latest results, as at 9 November 2026
Half year to June 2026, reported 25 August 2026: funds from operations rose 4.4 per cent to $612 million, and distributions rose 4.9 per cent to $481 million. Occupancy reached 99.8 per cent, and its centres had a record 552 million visits, with retailers’ sales rising 4.2 per cent to $30.3 billion. Scentre upgraded its full-year forecast, and expects funds from operations of at least 23.79 cents a security for 2026.
Next update: Scentre reports its full-year results for 2026 in February 2027.
