Piedmont Capital has expanded its retail holdings in North Carolina with the acquisition of The Shops at Franklin Square, a grocery-anchored shopping center in Gaston County. The investor paid $24.5 million for the asset, which is located in Gastonia, NC, and marks the company’s second retail purchase in the county and its third closing in 2026.
The Shops at Franklin Square totals 134,214 square feet and is anchored by Ashley Furniture. The center opened in 2007 and is reported to be 98% occupied, indicating a largely stabilized tenancy at the time of sale. The property sits on a 10.15-acre parcel, providing a sizable retail footprint within the Gastonia market near Charlotte.
According to reporting from the Charlotte Business Journal, Piedmont Capital acquired the center from Medalist Diversified REIT. Medalist previously purchased the property in 2017 for $20.5 million, establishing a clear pricing history across the two most recent trades. No additional financial terms or yield metrics were disclosed.
JLL advised the buyer on the transaction. The brokerage team of Tom Kolarczyk and Andrew Jomantas represented Piedmont Capital in the acquisition, providing investment sales advisory services for the deal. The seller’s representation was not specified.
With this purchase, Piedmont Capital’s retail portfolio now includes 11 properties totaling more than 700,000 square feet across North Carolina and Virginia. In Gaston County, the firm also owns Main Street Crossing, a grocery-anchored center in Belmont that spans more than 65,000 square feet. The company’s holdings extend to other markets in the region as well, including Sadler Square in Davidson, which is slated to bring new restaurants and retail offerings as part of a broader revamp of that property.
The acquisition of The Shops at Franklin Square further consolidates Piedmont Capital’s presence in the Charlotte-area retail market, with a particular concentration in grocery-anchored and necessity-based centers in suburban communities. The combination of a regional anchor tenant, high occupancy, and an established trade history underscores ongoing investor interest in stabilized retail assets in this part of the Carolinas.
