20 years
supporting businesses in the region
In 1993, SEGRO was better known as Slough Estates, the name highlighting its formative location in western Slough. Today, SEGRO is a leading owner, asset manager and developer of modern warehousing, light industrial and data centres, with property assets worth £4.7 billion principally concentrated in London’s Western Corridor, including the Thames Valley and in key conurbations in France, Germany and Poland
20-year insights
Gareth Osborn: Providing homes for businesses
Gareth Osborn has lived in the Thames Valley and worked for SEGRO based at the Slough Trading Estate for more than 20 years. He’s proud of what SEGRO has achieved.
“At the Slough Trading Estate we provide a home for a diverse range of businesses and some 17,000 workers. During the course of the past five years we have developed more than 1 million sq ft of new space and welcomed new customers, including Infinity, Gyron, Gallery One and Hytera whilst also working with existing customers such as Selig, Karl Storz, Ragus and UK Mail to help them grow.”
Catering to the changing needs of business the Trading Estate offers an ideal location from data centres to R&D facilities as well as startup companies who can set up home at the Enterprise Quarter which is specifically tailored to the needs of SME businesses.
Looking ahead Osborn sees the Thames Valley continuing to prosper, especially with the arrival of Crossrail in 2018 that will reduce journey times into central London to 30 minutes. “We know from our customers that easy access into London is a priority and with journey times at as little as 30 minutes we anticipate continued demand for good quality business space.”
The Estate also benefits from a Simplified Planning Zone status that enables developments to be ‘fast-tracked’ to meet customer demand and SEGRO has the sites available to deliver bespoke buildings.
The infrastructure around the Estate is beneficial to SEGRO customers and Osborn is keen to see decisive action around the expansion of Heathrow Airport.
“UK businesses need to be provided with the right infrastructure, whether that’s transportation, power or broadband connectivity, and the private sector will work to help the economy flourish.”
With significant infrastructure already feeding into Heathrow, potential for improved western- rail access, and the UK-linked Reading station now upgraded, Osborn’s keen support for the UK’s hub airport is plain, as he dismisses ‘Boris’s Island.’
“The Thames Valley is also absolutely integral to THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – SEPTEMBER 2013
our business and many others.” (London’s western corridor, which includes the Thames Valley, houses roughly half of SEGRO’s overall property assets).
“Businesses do not like uncertainty, and as a major investor in the area, it’s important to us that we have certainty and clarity around the future strategy of Heathrow.”
Suitable ‘homes for businesses’ are crucial, Osborn notes. SEGRO happily satisfies the varied flexible, lease accommodation requirements of today’s industrial and distribution companies and has recently seen an increase in demand for its warehouses from parcel delivery companies. These companies are experiencing growth due to the rise of Internet shopping and given the location of our premises – close to large urban conurbations, we are in an ideal position to help them service the crucial ‘last mile’ delivery.
Osborn notes that work style requirements for offices have changed, with employees being more mobile, working flexibly. “It has led to companies looking afresh at what they need and that’s leading to a reduction in overall demand for office space.
“But, people are still looking for good modern accommodation for their businesses.” He notes how Telefonica in Slough has created a dynamic working environment that is so “funky, interesting and stimulating that they have too many remote workers wanting to come in to work there.
“The Thames Valley question-mark is how it deals with those properties built in the 1990s that are now approaching the end of their natural lives.”
"Having said that, our property economy here is still strong – if you want offices in the UK, you’ll want them in London or the Thames Valley.
“It’s a great place to live and work. That’s why businesses want to be here. We just have to make sure we don’t lose sight of the fact that the Thames Valley still needs some support to keep control of its evolution.”
Although many Thames Valley folk were unaware, in 1993 Slough Estates was already an international player in the commercial property world.
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Formed in 1920, Slough Estates had major property involvements throughout Europe and North America by the early 1990s.
Key dates have since marked the strategic creation of today’s specialist SEGRO entity serving more than 1,400 customers spread across a diverse range of industry sectors.
In 2007, Slough Estates became a UK-REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) and adopted a new name – SEGRO (Slough Estates Group). Importantly, it also sold its American assets, and focused on Europe – properties in France, Germany, Poland, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and Czech Republic now formed part of SEGRO’s portfolio.
Since 2011, SEGRO has been focusing on creating a high-quality portfolio of modern, well-located warehouses, light industrial and data centre assets.
Last December, for the third year SEGRO picked up an Estates Gazette ‘Property Company of the Year – Industrial and Distribution’ Award. As the judging panel commented: “They (SEGRO) had a very well-publicised strategy, they went out and talked a lot about it, and they did it, that’s no mean feat in these times.”
One gets the impression that Osborn wishes other decision-makers connected with the Thames Valley’s future would adopt SEGRO’s decisive and determined approach to control their own destiny – and soon.
www.businessmag.co.uk
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