Welcome to the first update of 2016, giving you an up-to-date view of the office, investment & development market in the west of the West End and providing an insight into prevailing trends in this sector.
Q1 MARKET SUMMARY – Market Update Q1 2016
This Market Update take up of office space doubled in Hammersmith & Fulham this quarter to just under 80,000 sq ft as a raft of new supply reached practical completion and was speedily let. 33,500 sq ft was let at the newly refurbished Aircraft Factory and 30,000 sq ft at 1 Queen Caroline Street (formerly the Coca-Cola HQ) above Hammersmith Broadway Underground Station.
The April launch of 167,000 sq ft at 12 Hammersmith Grove contributes to the increase in vacant office supply in Hammersmith & Fulham which has jumped from 3.85% of the entire stock to 8.93%. This gives tenants more choice in terms of buildings and different rent profiles, with office rents ranging from between £50 and £59, the latter being achieved at The Aircraft Factory.
Landed at The Aircraft Factory – Market Update Q1 2016
Just before practical completion of the renovation of The Aircraft Factory in Cambridge Grove, Hammersmith, 7 tenants have landed, mainly from the technology and creative sectors.
- Deltek – global software firm
- Odschecker – betting comparison site
- Sybarite – architects
- Magnetise Solutions – media technology
- Aveva – engineering software
- Clear People – digital marketing
- Origin Coffee – artisan coffee, retail & wholesaler
The Aircraft Factory has a fascinating history, dating back to the late 19th century, when it was built as a Waring & Gillow furniture factory. During the First and Second World Wars it was utilised to produce planes and employees originally skilled in producing fine furniture were set to making military aircraft, including the iconic Mosquito Fighter. After the war the building was briefly used as a film set for the 1936 Alfred Hitchcock film ‘Secret Agent’, where the building appeared as a Swiss chocolate factory. It now provides 78,000 sq ft of creative office accommodation with a number of private roof terraces and landscaped communal areas.
NEW CROSSRAIL 2 STATION AT IMPERIAL WHARF – Market Update Q1 2016
A rail line from Chelsea to Hackney, was first proposed in 1904 and again in the late 1960s. It has been on the long-term agenda ever since. The plans are to build a new station in the centre of Chelsea on the Kings Road, which is not currently served directly by any tube or national rail station. In March, the Government identified Crossrail 2 as a ‘priority’ and provided £80million to develop the project. This comes after the National Infrastructure Commission endorsed the scheme and called for it to be fully developed so it can secure powers by 2019 and open in the early 2030s.
The proposed Chelsea station entrance would be located at 250 King’s Road on the junction of Sydney Street, SW3 next to the Farmer’s Market. Neighbouring borough, Hammersmith & Fulham, are lobbying for a station to be located at Imperial Wharf instead and are taking advantage of some of Chelsea’s local resident’s opposition, including that of Felicity Kendal from ‘The Good Life’.
COWORKING BOOST – Market Update Q1 2016
A boost to W2 office take up was the co working company, WeWork, leasing 109,000 sq ft at 2 Eastbourne Terrace, W2 opposite Paddington Station for £55 per sq ft. Rents in Vauxhall also increased to £55 for the first time as Nutmeg, the online investment company, took 10,652 sq ft in the former Marmite Factory, Vox Studios, 1-45 Durham Street in Vauxhall, SE11. This also has a co working area called Club Vauxhall. Coworking is a shared working environment where workers are not employed by the same organization and is typically attractive to work-at-home professionals, independent contractors, or people who travel frequently who end up working in relative isolation. Coworking can solve the problem of isolation that many freelancers experience while working at home, while at the same time letting them escape the distractions of home or to generally avoid the wife/husband/children.
