Barings Real Estate, one of the world’s largest diversified real estate investment managers, and Industrious the highly regarded flexible workplace provider have announced that soaring demand for flex space in Manchester has resulted in the Industrious St Peter’s Square flex centre at Landmark Manchester being 86% occupied less than 18 months after its launch.
The 32,000 sq ft premium flexible workplace which is operated by Industrious is located across the ground, second and third floors of Barings’ award-winning 180,000 sq ft Landmark development at St Peter’s Square in Manchester City Centre. Since its launch, the space has attracted high profile occupiers including JPMorgan Chase & Co, HSBC, Nordcloud (part of IBM) and CMC to name a few, resulting in high occupancy levels.
Ralph Dorey, Managing Director, UK at Industrious comments; “Flex space continues to be in strong demand and we’re finding that businesses have much clearer requirements for space and will come to us with exact desk needs and hours of meeting room space per month which is in contrast to previous years when there was more uncertainty. Many have a two year commitment with internal reviews after 12 months and we’re seeing demand polarised with most requirements for either 50-200 desks or at the smaller end of 2-10 desks. Regardless of the size though, it’s the perks that all the companies want in terms of the catering and hospitality offering, the events, the wellness programme and exercise facilities without having to compromise on a central location.”
The benefits offered by the centre have proven so popular that the team has now launched a Community Membership scheme for occupiers on traditional leases in Landmark, which include; Vanguard, Starling Bank, Santander, Xero, RSM, Allianz Insurance, Grant Thornton and JLL, to benefit from the hospitality and wellbeing programme on offer as well as discounts on meeting rooms and conference facilities.
Ian Mayhew, Managing Director, UK Asset management at Barings, said: “The flex centre has always supported Landmark’s traditional occupiers with overflow meeting and coworking space, and the ability to expand into flexible private offices as needed. However, the new community membership initiative allows them to benefit from daily breakfast, coffee, tea and snacks, and a weekly calendar of virtual and in-person programming and events, which can be invaluable in the attraction and retention of staff. One of our new occupiers, Santander who have signed a lease for 11 years, is moving to Landmark from another Industrious centre and we know that the community membership offered by Industrious was an important factor in their decision making. It’s also a good example of how the partnership between Barings and Industrious is operating for the benefit of the building as a whole.”
The flex market hasn’t reached saturation according to Dorey. “We’re actively looking for new locations for our flex centres. If you have the right building with the ability to deliver the best set up then the demand will be there. As a premium provider of space, one of the key factors for us has always been the detail on aspects such as sound attenuation. This has been critical for organisations such as HSBC UK who require that level of privacy. We have a formula that works and are looking into more partnership agreements to continue to roll out the centres.”
Industrious operates four locations across the U.K. The centre at Landmark offers 23 private offices accommodating one - 300+ people (Industrious Team), multiple conference rooms with state-of-the-art technology to accommodate in-person and hybrid work (Industrious Meet), and coworking spaces for individual workers (Industrious Share). Private offices come with an array of branding options for occupiers, enterprise-grade technology and customisable layouts. The space also features a cafe, multiple lounge and seating areas perfectly suited for group meetings and collaboration.
In a commitment to providing an engaging workplace experience, in addition to the hospitality and wellbeing programme, members can expect high-speed and secure Wi-Fi, mailing and printing capabilities, on-site support from a dedicated Community Manager, access to a global network of workspace and more.
Completed in 2020, the 180,000 sq ft award-winning Landmark development offers 14 floors of BREEAM Excellent and Wired Score Platinum certified, office space in Manchester City Centre.
Barings’ focus on well-being, customer experience, sustainability and technological infrastructure at Landmark has delivered a world-class office building with the capacity to support the implementation of Hana by Industrious’ high-quality and hospitality-driven operations. Landmark also provides all-important facilities for existing and future tenants, including the introduction of contactless technologies enabling touch-free movement within the building, access to secured bike spaces, an eleventh-floor terrace, a fully equipped locker room with showers, electric car charging stations and more.
