The UK’s RockSpring Property Investment Managers has opened a new office in Amsterdam to focus on asset management and sourcing acquisitions in the Netherlands, appointing Laurien Van Wieringen to head up the operation.

The launch of the new office was driven by the increasing importance of the Netherlands to a number of Rockspring’s pan-European mandates, the firm said in a statement.

RockSpring plans to double the size of its property portfolio in the next few years and intends to largely target shopping centres and retail parks. Such properties, the firm argues, represent a good investment prospect due to the rapid growth of the out-of-town retail format and the increasing competition amongst retailers looking to expand their market share in the Netherlands, not to mention the region’s strong economy and relatively low unemployment.

Van Wieringen has been with the firm since 2007, prior to which she worked for the Dutch property investment management company IBUS.

The launch of the Amsterdam office closely follows the hire of Mischa Davis as fund manager of the Rockspring Hanover Property Unit Trust and Charles Baigler as assistant fund manager of the Rockspring PanEuropean Property Limited Partnership. Davis latterly spent nine years at Matrix Property Fund Management, as a fund manager and partner; Baigler joined from Catalyst Capital, where he spent four years as a director.