MIPIM told speculative development a sign of Coventry & Warwickshire’s strength

Speculative development of both large sheds and smaller units is a key barometer of the strength of Coventry and Warwickshire’s commercial property sector, investors at the MIPIM property exhibition have been told.

The area’s delegation to the event in Cannes said that for first time in more than a decade speculative developments were becoming commonplace throughout the region.

Works that are currently about to start, in progress or near competition in Coventry and Warwickshire include Imperial Park and Carbon 207 at Coventry Airport, Birch Coppice and CORE 42 in Dordon, Lyons Park in Coventry, Rugby Gateway and Loades EcoParc in Exhall.

In 2013, Birch Coppice was the location of the first spec build large shed unit over 100,000 sq ft outside of London post 2008, and the delegates said this confidence was now extending to smaller units of sub-50,000 sq ft.

Construction will also start soon on another spec build at Europark in Rugby by property company, Richard Utley.

Chris Utley from the company said that the outlook for these types of developments was extremely positive.
“Coventry and Warwickshire does seem to be very buoyant in all sectors, but definitely in the real estate industry,” he said.

“This seems to be driven by the likes of companies such as Jaguar Land Rover also bucking the national trend themselves.

“It is all incredibly positive news and shows the strength that the region has and the way we are moving forward.”
Work on the new unit should begin next month and Mr Utley said interest was already strong.

The Coventry and Warwickshire MIPIM Partnership is made up of leading companies and organisations which support the area’s presence at the event.

Ian Flynn, Inward Investment Manager at Warwickshire County Council, said: “These developments are not limited to one area or aimed at one sector and it underlines the attractiveness of Coventry and Warwickshire as a business destination.

“We have a good record of attracting inward investment and we are confident these developments will soon attract new and expanding companies.”

• TheBusinessDesk.com, in association with Marketing Birmingham, will be in Cannes for this week’s MIPIM event. Check out our exclusive coverage here