Jess Harrold is joined by Samantha McClary and Alex Daniel for the latest weekly round-up from EG.
Alex doesn't hold back in his assessment of London's new attraction, Marble Arch Mound - which has had a rough opening week. Thankfully, he is more optimistic for longer term plans to rejuvenate the Oxford Street area.
Meanwhile, Sam offers an update on the ever growing "big green giant" that is CBRE.
Together, they tackle more of the latest news that has been keeping them busy - but who will triumph in the always nail-biting quiz of the week?
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Jess Harrold is joined by Joanne McIvor, property partner at Edwin Coe LLP, and Rachel Titley, associate director quantity surveyor at Adair Ltd, as they share their professional perspectives on the future of the office.
Titley explains how workplaces will combine the best of physical proximity with the best of digital efficiency – “phygital” for short – and why she believes there will always be a need for the office.
“It comes down to community,” she says. “That’s what being in an office engenders. It is like being with your own little family. I want to walk in and feel welcome.”
McIvor talks through the impact on landlords on the changing demands of occupiers, and the importance of cooperation with tenants – and agrees on the desire to spend some time in a communal workplace.
“The office is the nucleus of where we learn from others,” McIvor says. “It’s a platform for collaboration, it’s a source of friends and a social life... respite from those we live with...a reason to get out of the house.”
The real estate fund of funds industry is entering a new era, says the research director at the trade body representing investors.
Iryna Pylypchuk, director of research and market information at INREV – the European Association for Investors in Non-Listed Real Estate Vehicles – describes funds of funds as undergoing “an evolution” in terms of scale and the diversification they offer to investors.
In this 15-minute discussion, Pylypchuk tells Tim Burke, EG's deputy editor, about the growth of global strategies, how funds of different vintages are performing and what a new era for the market might look like.
It's back to business as usual for EG Like Sunday Morning, as Jess Harrold welcomes back Alex Daniel and invites Piers Wehner along for his EG podcast debut.
Piers - the tireless writer behind our daily must-read round-up of property news in the press - reveals what it is like to read every newspaper at 4am, and shares what he has learned this week about wooden buildings.
Office guru Alex has the latest on an impressive looking development with major sustainability credentials, and more news.
But, as the quiz of the week returns, who will hold their nerve to triumph?
An increasing volume of both EG column inches and commercial investor attention is being commanded by the life science sector - underpinned by a variety of growth factors and significant increases in both public and private sector funding.
EG last week revealed our own research which looked beyond the traditional 'Golden Triangle' heartland of life sciences for alternative areas which appear best-placed to benefit from the expansion of domestic industry.
Graham Shone is joined on this edition of 'No Filter' by Deputy Legal Editor Jess Harrold to discuss the research published last week, how it came about, and what it might mean for some of those locations highlighted.
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The commercial property market in Sussex has proved remarkably resilient and this has been helped by Brighton’s unique offering as a haven for independent retail - something other markets could perhaps learn from. We spoke to Flude Property Consultants director and head of Brighton agency Andrew Halfacree as well as director and head of retail & leisure Will Thomas to learn more.
Flude sits comfortably ahead of the rest of the Radius market in the On Demand Rankings in both West and East Sussex, with retail providing the backbone of this success. Most towns, argues Thomas, offer the same shops selling the same things and this is perhaps why many of the larger chains are struggling. Brighton, however, has a vibrant independent offering and the city is now buzzing as the sun shines.
Halfacree says the office market is also performing strongly with some major deals expected to cross the line shortly. One of the factors driving this is the emergence of satellite offices as employees are reluctant to go back to the old normal of commuting into London every day, and this is having wider spin off benefits for other property types as more money is kept in the local economy.
The JLL Property Triathlon is back for 2021 and real estate athletes are getting ready to don their Lycra, pull on their wetsuits and whizz around the track at Dorney Lake near Eton on what has become one of the biggest industry events of the year.
After being cancelled due to the Covid pandemic in 2020, the triathlon is back on 20 August and this 35-minute podcast is a must-listen for anyone taking part this year.
Dive into the conversation to hear from four competitors about what the JLL Property triathlon means to them, how training is going and what they are most looking forward to come 20 August.
And if you stay until the end, EG editor Samantha McClary shares a tale of exactly how not to race a triathlon, reliving her greatest racing faux pas from the days when she attempted to be a semi-serious athlete.
This time last year, EG’s Bricks & Mortar host, Sarah Jackman, spoke to Toby Swindells and Megha Sharma – undergraduates at the University of Reading – about the transition to online learning and developing a career in a pandemic.
12 months later, both have completed their courses and secured employment within the industry. Here, they join Sarah for a look back on their degree, how they found searching for employment and why studying real estate can offer many benefits.
Sam McClary, Tim Burke and Jess Harrold are united in renouncing racism in all its forms. Together, they discuss EG's response to the horrific abuse visited on members of the England national team following their defeat to Italy in last week's European Championships final.
From a powerful piece in this week's EG from an author that was driven away from real estate by the racism he suffered in the workplace, to our imminent 2021 survey of racial diversity in the industry, they share their views on why this is one of the most pressing issues - if not the most - faced by the property sector today.
