Demand spikes for shopping centre office space

May 03, 2012 | Retail | Office | Commercial

Shopping centres are no longer the domain of retailers alone, with demand from corporate tenants on the rise in 2012, according to Colliers International.

Travis Myerscough, Colliers International Associate Director, Office Leasing, said the desire to attract and retain quality staff was prompting businesses to look farther afield to satisfy their office requirements.

“We are seeing a definite trend emerging, whereby businesses are increasingly turning their attention to office space with in close proximity or located within a shopping centre,” Mr Myerscough said.

“It used to be only retailers who would take up residence in shopping centres as they had a greater understanding of the concept, but now most medium-large corporates will consider it and a growing number of businesses are making the move.”

Over the past 12 months, Colliers International leased 9000sq m of office space at several major shopping centres. Deals were done at Doncaster (for 1000sq m), Knox (1500sq m), Chadstone (1500sq m) and Victoria Gardens (5,000sq m) shopping centres.

In comparison, Mr Myerscough said there was upwards of a staggering 20,000sq m of office space set to come online by ealt 2014 courtesy of several key shopping centre developments.

This included 13,000sq m at Chadstone, 15,000sq m at Sunshine, 10,000sq m at Narre Warren and a proposed development at Eastland in Ringwood.

Mr Myerscough said demand for shopping centre office space was on the rise as tenants discovered how convenient the set up could be for their businesses.

“One of the most influential factors tenants consider when deciding upon office facilities is convenience for their staff,” Mr Myerscough said.

“For businesses, it’s all about attracting and retaining quality staff so when it comes to their premises, they want to be able to offer their staff access to as many benefits and facilities as possible.

“Shopping centres provide abundant and accessible amenities – plentiful car parking in particular is a great bonus. These centres are also generally well serviced by public transport.”

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