CHARLOTTE—Phillips Edison – ARC Shopping Center REIT is continuing to target the Carolinas. Phillips Edison just snapped up two shopping centers in North Carolina via its joint venture PECO-ARC for $11.6 million.

“These two centers fall within our plan to purchase leading grocery-anchored centers in stable and growing markets which provide the majority of its income from national credit tenants within stable markets,” John Bessey, president of Phillips Edison, tells GlobeSt.com. Bessey says the company will work to increase revenues by decreasing expenses, creating new revenue sources and pushing the tenancy over time.

The anchor at both centers, Food Lion, along with other national tenants at each center composes 74% of base rents at each shopping center. Food Lion recently announced in its corporate brand repositioning strategy that it would highlight North Carolina as one of the states for an increasing density of Food Lion stores.

Westin Centre is located in Fayetteville, the fifth largest metropolitan area in North Carolina and home to Ft. Bragg and Pope Air Force Bases. The 66,890-square-foot property is 100% occupied. Additional national tenants at the shopping center include CVS, Family Dollar, Subway and Rent-A-Center.

Tramway Crossing is located in Sanford, whose largest employers include 3M, Caterpillar, Pfizer and Coty. The 62,382-square-foot property is 95.5% occupied. Additional national tenants at the shopping center include CVS, Family Dollar and H&R Block.

Bessey says the joint venture will continue buying shopping centers in North Carolina, so long as any they deliver on the firm’s strategy. But there are challenges.

“The biggest challenge in the current environment is obtaining the confidence from the public that grocery-anchored investments are secure and stable,” Bessey says. “Our investment thesis has always been that ‘we all have to eat’ and grocery-anchored centers have proven themselves to be stable by providing steady income in good and bad times.”