First Industrial Realty Trust, a provider of industrial real estate supply chain solutions, announced on Wednesday it is expanding into France and Germany. The Chicago-based company has hired Christophe Chauvard as country director in France and Oliver Drecker as country director in Germany, to lead the expansion into these markets.
First Industrial Realty Trust, a provider of industrial real estate supply chain solutions, announced on Wednesday it is expanding into France and Germany. The Chicago-based company has hired Christophe Chauvard as country director in France and Oliver Drecker as country director in Germany, to lead the expansion into these markets.
The company announced the opening of a new office in Paris, France, saying Paris is France's largest industrial real estate market, with nearly one-third of the country's total industrial space. First Industrial plans to concentrate investment activity in The Ile-de-France and Lyon markets.
Chauvard, who has more than 10 years of commercial real estate management experience, will report to Jan Scheers, managing director of Europe. 'France is a critical location for pan-European distribution as the gateway for the Iberian Peninsula and the United Kingdom, due to its efficient transportation infrastructure and access to a large consumer base,' said Scheers.
The Ile-de-France includes the majority of the Paris metropolitan region, and is home to the largest concentration of commercial properties in Europe. Lyon is the second largest economic hub in France and is home to the largest inland container port in France, Port Edouard-Herriot.
In Germany, First Industrial will target investments in the Rhine/Ruhr area, as well as Hamburg and Bremen. The Rhine/Ruhr area offers an extensive multi-modal transportation network and a dense concentration of consumers. Hamburg and Bremen are the two largest container ports in Germany, requiring industrial real estate to handle the flow of goods entering and exiting the country.
