WeWork Debuts, Record Birmingham Rent Agreed
The waiting, the rumours, the anxiety, it's all over. After 18 months of speculation WeWork has finally landed in Birmingham.
The coworking giant has signed for 55K SF at U.S.-owned landlord Nuveen's 55 Colmore Row, and in the process set what is being claimed to be a new record headline rent for Birmingham.
The letting is the shared workplace provider’s first in the city. It has taken three floors of space at the Grade II-listed building, which is owned by Nuveen Real Estate’s European Cities Fund. Nuveen is part of TH Real Estate, the real estate investment management holding company owned by Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America.
55 Colmore Row underwent a £30M redevelopment in 2015. Top rents in the city hover around £34/SF.
“Birmingham can now welcome WeWork to a super prime location within the city centre," CBRE Head of Midlands Office Agency Will Ventham said. "This says a lot about the demand for this product, style of working and the growing maturity of this sector. The deal is reward for Nuveen’s strategic acquisition of prime assets across their European Cities Fund and WeWork’s offer always stood out, against healthy competition for the remaining space, as key to supporting the wider occupier mix."
Joint agents are Savills.
WeWork's fit-out will commence in June, with a target opening date of Q4.
