Nuveen Real Estate is introducing a single operating platform for its entire €7bn European office portfolio.
The $132bn (€109bn) real estate fund manager said it was the first major landlord to implement such a platform, which it hopes will help entice workers back to the office.
It will be managed by BNP Paribas Real Estate and look to provide tailored solutions to each asset and occupier, which could include improvements to food and beverage offerings, fitness and wellbeing initiatives and enhanced concierge and hospitality services.
BNP Paribas Real Estate will act as the “face of the landlord… going far beyond traditional property management”, Nuveen said.
The new initiative is also designed to future-proof assets and to create a “more transparent and collaborative relationship” between owner and occupiers.
“Currently, and in a post-pandemic future, this type of customer-focused approach will be even more relevant, with community, health and wellbeing increasingly at the fore of employer and employee priorities,” said Nick Deacon, head of European offices at Nuveen Real Estate.
“Nuveen’s operating platform has been designed with this in mind, allowing it to get even closer to tenants and providing services that are no longer just a ‘nice to have’ but are now essential.
“We firmly believe that offices will continue to be relevant, but they cannot continue operating in the way they have done previously. Occupier expectations have increased significantly over the past five or so years, with technology, sustainability and wellbeing now at the heart of their needs, and these trends have only been accelerated as a consequence of the pandemic.
“The office sector needs to reinvent itself to stay relevant. This is not a secret, but we feel that there is a need to go beyond what is being provided now – occupiers are looking for what they can’t get at home.”
Csongor Csukas, CEO of the Real Estate Property Management France subsidary of BNP Paribas Real Estate, said: “BNP Paribas Real Estate shares the same people-centric values as Nuveen. Beyond the traditional management of real estate, we also take care of human interactions and user experience.
“Services and user experience represent the main purpose of our business. Property management has evolved from property administration to tenant relationship management, placing people at the heart of our approach. This customer-centric approach is what we call human estate.”
The platform will initially cover all office assets within Nuveen’s Cityhold Office Partnership, Central London Office strategy and European Cities strategy, but will subsequently be rolled out across its entire European office portfolio, representing about €7bn of assets under management, during this year and next.
The majority of assets are located across the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, France and Italy.
The platform will be led by Nicolas Bastid, senior portfolio manager, and Andy Booth, senior portfolio manager, at Nuveen. Antoine Delomez, account director, and Grégoire Tripon, head of business development for Europe at BNP Paribas Real Estate Property Management, will oversee tenant relationship management.
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