SMEs behind rise in Bristol industrial property deals 20th February 2014

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and the start-up community were responsible for a 20 per cent rise in industrial property deals in Bristol during the first half of 2013, according to research published by commercial property advisers Jones Lang LaSalle. Compared to 2012, the total number of industrial deals for 2013 was up by 6 per cent.

85 per cent of deals throughout the year were by SMEs reflecting the long awaited rise in business confidence and brighter economic outlook.

This is particularly visible amongst the SME community, which is traditionally faster to react to economic shifts than large-scale business, according to Jones Lang LaSalle.

A recent Centre for Cities Report revealed that Bristol is second only to London in terms of the number of business start-ups.

With continued demand and the pressure on existing supply Bristol and the surrounding areas remain a strong prospect for developers.

Chris Miles, associate director in Jones Lang LaSalle’s industrial and logistics team said:

“2013 was very encouraging in terms of the number of industrial deals reflecting, at long last, a rise in business confidence. Bristol and the surrounding area is one of the UK’s leading regions for SMEs, driven by a highly skilled labour force, a strong pipeline of work from major industry players, leading universities and of course a widely recognised high quality of life.

“The industrial property deals of 2013 show just how much the SME sector is driving the regional economy, claiming 85 per cent of all industrial deals. We predict this trend to continue during 2014 following David Cameron’s pledge to “cut red tape” for small businesses.

“The three key ingredients are now in place to make Bristol and the region a strong prospect for investment - high demand, low supply and sufficient available land. A much anticipated return of speculative development could be just around the corner.”