CBRE advised on the 4,100 sqm leasing transaction of Spaces in Expo Business Center

CBRE advised on the leasing transaction of 4,100 sqm office space for the largest center to be opened by Spaces in Romania. The center will open mid 2019 in Expo Business Park, located in the Expoziției area, in the Northern part of the Bucharest.

Spaces is a brand of coworking spaces dedicated to companies with history and startups, that provides a flexible working environment, increasing productivity and creativity. The brand is owned by International Workspace Group (IWG), a multinational corporation whose portfolio also includes Regus, Basepoint, No.18, Signature and Open Office.

IWG entered the local market in 1999 with Regus. CBRE and IWG have a trusted partnership, the transaction that secured office premises for Spaces in Expo Business Park being the eleventh collaboration materialized with the opening of a new centre between these two industry leaders.

”CBRE supports the current trend of accelerated growth in the number of coworking spaces in the office sector. The fact that our country follows this global trend is a sign that the local market is maturing. The decision of such a large player as IWG to expand its business in our country, through Spaces and Regus, is further proof that the Romanian economy is strong enough to trigger interest from major international companies. Also, we are pleased to observe that powerful developers, such as Portland Trust, value alternative workspaces as part of their office projects, thus being in a strong position to offer their tenants much needed flexibility for long-term leases. The opening of the largest Spaces center in Romania is both a confirmation of the solid partnership between CBRE and IWG, as well as an indicator that the serviced office sector is heading in the right direction, and increasing the share of the flexibile component. According to CBRE’s prognosis, every successful office project to open in the next period should offer flexibility through coworking and serviced offices in order to attract tenants and secure long-term leases”, said Razvan Iorgu, managing director of CBRE Romania.

The process of identifying the best location for the Spaces center took 12 months. The leasing contract exceeds the market average length of five years. Moreover, this is further evidence of IWG’s confidence in the potential of Piata Presei Libere – Expoziției area of becoming the next business hub of Bucharest.

The opening of the new M6 subway line which will connect Bucharest with Henri Coanda International Airport will also contribute to the surface traffic improvement in the area. Taking this factor into consideration, many developers of office and residential schemes have plans to start projects in this part of the city.

IWG with its brand Spaces is not the only large company that acknoledged the area’s capacity to grow into the next sub-market in Northern Bucharest. ING Bank also decided to strenghten its local business operations by consolidating its headquarters in Building 3 of Expo Business Park, which will be fully occupied by the Dutch bank.

CBRE also represented ING Bank in the closing of this leasing transaction.

Expo Business Park is the first major office project to be delivered in Expoziției area of Bucharest in the last seven years, and will have a net leasable surface of 40,000 sqm located at the crossroad between Expoziției Avenue and Aviator Popișteanu Street.