Investment and SMEs drive strong year for Bruntwood Works in Liverpool
Bruntwood Works has reported a “highly positive” year of activity across its Liverpool commercial property portfolio.
The firm, which owns several city centre buildings including The Plaza, Cotton Exchange and Queen Insurance Buildings, has agreed deals totalling more than 100,000 sq ft of space during the past 12 months, despite challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Among its success stories this year has been its serviced office space at The Plaza, where businesses are able to pay a fixed cost per desk that includes aspects such as rent, superfast broadband, cleaning and mail handling and offers maximum flexibility.
A number of existing customers have also expanded significantly within Bruntwood Works’ buildings during this time, including Marcloud, CFS Freight and Three Graces Legal, who are all based at Cotton Exchange, with others currently under negotiation.
Bruntwood Works accredits much of this success to continued investment and higher specification within its buildings, coupled with its efforts to adapt to the distinct needs of smaller businesses during the pandemic.
Tony Reed, head of commercial at Bruntwood, said: “There is a common assumption that most business owners and their teams have stayed away from their workspaces in the past 18 months and that buildings are increasingly empty, but that’s simply not the case in our experience.
“This has arguably been one of our busiest years on record in Liverpool as we’ve agreed deals with businesses for space in excess of 100,000 sq ft, while enquiries have been consistently high throughout the period.
“The city has a flourishing SME community and is, therefore, less reliant on major occupiers or multi-location firms. Many SMEs tell us they need to be together to share ideas and develop strategies in order to grow and it is their ambitions that have driven much of our activity this year.”
He added: “We have also made multimillion-pound investments in our Liverpool portfolio in recent years and that work is clearly paying dividends. Businesses increasingly want high quality space where they are proud to bring clients and staff, coupled with features such as breakout spaces, event facilities and opportunities to collaborate with their peers.
Tony Reed
“That investment continues, with ongoing enhancements at Cotton Exchange, Queen Insurance Buildings and Exchange Court. Our multimillion-pound Pioneer development at The Plaza is also due to complete in early 2022, transforming the space with a new restaurant and bar, communal lounge, fitness suite, gym and bike storage – creating a work address like no other in Liverpool.
“Enquiries and pipeline for 2022 are already buoyant across a range of business sectors and we have some newly-refurbished suites coming available soon, so we are looking ahead to another highly positive year for our Liverpool properties.”
