The Sterling Properties Group

What The Sterling Properties Group does

The Sterling Properties Group (operating as Sterling Group; French: Groupe Sterling) is a privately held Canadian commercial real estate owner and manager established in 1998 and headquartered at 1395 rue de l'Église in Saint Laurent (Montreal), Quebec. The company owns and manages a 70-property portfolio totaling over 1.7 million square feet of gross leasable area (GLA) concentrated in Eastern Canada, with capital allocation weighted to Ontario (50%), Quebec (27%), Newfoundland & Labrador (20%), and New Brunswick (3%). Sector mix is 73% retail, 9% office, 8% residential, 8% land for development, and 2% industrial. The portfolio comprises enclosed shopping malls, unenclosed power centres and strip malls, office and industrial buildings, a 9-property hospitality collection in Mont-Tremblant, and over 840 acres of land held for greenfield development across 11 strategic parcels.

The company generates revenue primarily through leasing commercial space — anchored by national enterprise tenants including Walmart, Sobeys, Loblaws, Metro, Shoppers Drug Mart, Best Buy, Dollarama, Cineplex, and the major Canadian banks (TD, CIBC, Scotiabank, BMO). Tenant mix by GLA is 70% national, 19% regional, and 11% local. The portfolio serves more than 250 tenants ranging from multinational corporations to local businesses, and also includes government tenants (Government of Newfoundland & Labrador, WorkplaceNL) and community organizations (YMCA, College of the North Atlantic). Sterling acquires properties both directly and through joint ventures; notable sellers have included Laurentian Bank, Caisse des Dépôts, Crombie REIT, Slate Office REIT, Kingsett Capital, and Investors Group.

Sterling operates with a small central team of 11-50 employees based at its Montreal-area headquarters, where acquisition, legal, asset management, and leasing decisions are centralized. Marketing and leasing rely on a corporate website, dedicated per-property microsites (e.g., frasermall.ca), a bilingual (English/French) presence, a toll-free leasing line, and direct outreach. The firm has received recognition for preserving its heritage-listed 1907 headquarters, which received the Emeritus Heritage Award from the City of Montreal in 2007. The company remains privately held with no evidence of institutional, PE, or public-company ownership in the available data.

Name

The Sterling Properties Group

Legal name

Sterling Group

Website

https://groupesterling.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Sterling Properties Group is a privately held Canadian commercial real estate owner-operator founded in 1998, managing 70 properties spanning 1.7 million square feet of retail, office, industrial, and residential space across Eastern Canada, plus an 840-acre land development bank, serving over 250 national, regional, and local tenants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Real Estate

NAICS

Lessors of Real Estate (5311), Rental and Leasing Services (532), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Operators Of Nonresidential Buildings (6512), Investors, Nec (6799)

akta.pro primary industry

Real Assets — Operating Platforms & Direct Investments (FSAAAKAL)

Keywords

• Commercial real estate
• Property management
• Real estate investment
• Asset management
• Commercial leasing

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Laurent

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Commercial Real Estate Leasing: The company generates revenue primarily through leasing retail, office, and industrial space to tenants. The portfolio includes shopping malls, unenclosed power centres, strip malls, office buildings, and industrial buildings. Rent is derived from gross leasable area (GLA) across 70 properties totaling over 1.7 million square feet.
2. Land Development: Revenue potential from development and sale of strategic land parcels. The company holds over 840 acres of land for greenfield development in Eastern Canada.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The Sterling Properties Group owns and manages a portfolio of 70+ commercial, residential, industrial, and land properties totaling more than 1.7 million square feet, primarily across Eastern Canada. The company leases space to over 250 tenants — ranging from multinational corporations to local businesses — and provides asset management and property management services for its holdings.

Product overview

The Sterling Properties Group (Sterling Group) is a Canadian real estate ownership and management company established in 1998. The company operates as a diversified property portfolio manager owning and managing over 1.7 million square feet of real estate across 70 properties concentrated in Eastern Canada. The portfolio spans multiple property types including enclosed shopping malls (Thunder Bay Centre, Heritage Place Shopping Centre, Valley Mall, Millbrook Mall, Marystown Mall, Fraser Mall), hospitality properties in Mont-Tremblant, office buildings, industrial buildings, and over 840 acres of land held for greenfield development. The company's sector diversification includes retail (73%), office (9%), residential (8%), land for development (8%), and industrial (2%), distributed regionally across Ontario (50%), Quebec (27%), Newfoundland & Labrador (20%), and New Brunswick (3%). The company provides property acquisition, asset management, and leasing services to over 250 tenants.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Commercial Property Leasing

Quantifiable outcome

• 1.7 million square feet of managed real estate
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• Slate Office REITmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2015, Sterling acquired three shopping malls (Millbrook Mall, Fraser Mall, and Marystown Mall) in Newfoundland & Labrador from Slate Office REIT. This acquisition expanded Sterling's footprint into Newfoundland & Labrador market.
• Crombie REITmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2014, Sterling acquired Valley Mall from Crombie REIT, marking Sterling's first expansion into Newfoundland & Labrador. This acquisition established Sterling's presence in the Corner Brook market.
• Kingsett CapitalmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2020, Sterling acquired Heritage Place Mall from Kingsett Capital, expanding Sterling's Ontario portfolio. This was a significant acquisition strengthening Sterling's presence in Owen Sound, Ontario.
• Investors GroupmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2021, Sterling acquired Thunder Bay Centre from Investors Group, further expanding Sterling's Ontario footprint. Thunder Bay Centre is a dominant Walmart Supercentre anchored open air centre.
• Caisse des DépôtscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2000, Sterling completed the purchase of an office building from Caisse des Dépôts (Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec), a major Quebec financial institution.
• Laurentian BankcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 1999, Sterling completed the purchase of the first 5 of the total 18 Laurentian Bank anchored properties, marking Sterling's entry into the commercial real estate market. This established the foundation of Sterling's portfolio.
• Joint Venture Partners (New Brunswick)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2014, Sterling expanded into New Brunswick with the purchase of three shopping centres as part of a joint venture partnership.
• Joint Venture Partner (Hawkesbury Center Mall)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2002, Sterling expanded its Ontario footprint with the purchase of Hawkesbury Center Mall as a joint venture.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Choice Properties REIT: Choice Properties is a major Canadian REIT that owns and manages a portfolio of retail and mixed-use properties, anchored by Loblaw tenants. Its enclosed-mall and grocery-anchored strategy closely parallels Sterling's national-retailer-anchored enclosed mall portfolio (which includes Loblaws as a named tenant).
• RioCan REIT: RioCan REIT is one of Canada's largest retail REITs, owning and operating a high-quality portfolio of retail properties across Canada. While Sterling is much smaller and regionally focused, both operate in enclosed malls and urban retail with national anchor tenants, making RioCan a relevant incumbent comparable.
• Morguard REIT: Morguard REIT is a diversified Canadian REIT that owns a mix of retail, office, and industrial properties across Canada. The multi-sector asset mix mirrors Sterling's retail/office/industrial/residential diversification, though Morguard operates at a larger scale.

Regional players

• True North Commercial REIT: True North Commercial REIT is a Canadian REIT focused on owning and acquiring office properties across Canada. It is comparable to Sterling's office segment (9% of capital allocation) but operates exclusively in office rather than Sterling's diversified retail-led portfolio.

Direct peers

• BTB REIT: BTB REIT is a smaller Canadian retail REIT focused on necessity-based and value-oriented retail properties. Its ungeared approach and focus on mid-market retail tenants align it with Sterling's profile of multi-tenant enclosed mall and strip mall assets in secondary markets.
• Crombie REIT: Crombie REIT is an open-ended Canadian REIT that owns and operates a portfolio of grocery-anchored retail properties, office, and mixed-use assets across Canada. It is directly comparable to Sterling because Sterling acquired Valley Mall from Crombie in 2014, indicating both operate in similar enclosed-mall retail real estate in Eastern Canada.
• Firm Capital Property Trust: Firm Capital Property Trust is a Canadian trust that owns a diversified portfolio of commercial, industrial, and residential properties across Canada and the U.S. Its small-cap, multi-sector profile and focus on acquiring individual properties at attractive prices mirror Sterling's strategy of building a regional multi-sector portfolio through serial acquisitions.
• Plaza Retail REIT: Plaza Retail REIT is a Canadian REIT focused on open-format retail and enclosed shopping centres primarily in Eastern Canada. It is comparable to Sterling in geography (Eastern Canada concentration), tenant mix (national and regional retailers), and property type (shopping plazas and enclosed malls).

Emerging players

• Slate Asset Management: Slate Asset Management is a Toronto-based alternative asset manager with real estate, infrastructure, and credit strategies. It is comparable because Sterling acquired three Newfoundland malls from Slate Office REIT in 2015, indicating both operate in similar Canadian commercial real estate transactions.

Others

• Canadian Apartment Properties REIT: CAPREIT is Canada's largest residential REIT, owning multi-family rental apartments across Canada. While Sterling's residential segment (8% of capital allocation) is much smaller, CAPREIT is relevant as a comparable investor in Canadian real estate and provides a benchmark for residential rental operations in Eastern Canadian markets.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-sterling-properties-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Sterling Properties Group