East Midlands In My View: Chris Wright, Director of OMEETO - Commercial Property Agents based in the East Midlands
of our specialism. The company is thankfully now in a position where we can look at investing in the right candidate(s) to develop other departments such as management, survey / professional work.
How does the investment market look in the Derbyshire area right now?
Can you tell us in your opinion how you feel the commercial property market is fairing at the moment?
OMEETO just celebrated a fifth year of trading, so our view of “the mar- ket at the moment” is a little skewed; we still judge each year if it was better than the last, and fortunately, the company has experienced yearly growth. What has become apparent is the increased seasonality of the market. Getting deals completed on the run up to Christmas was always tricky, but now Easter and Summer too. For some downtime has become more frequent, sacrosanct and a reluctance to “hand the job over” has emerged. I recently had one OOO reply of “I am on Annual Leave. Your mail will not be read or forwarded”! If parties are concerned about uncertainty in the market, it’s more important than ever to keep momentum, but for whatever reason, legals now seem to take twice as long. This has been a bigger issue for us. Parties get frustrated, it generates more work and increases chance of a deal failing. We are still seeing good appetite for well-priced properties, so are completing a healthy number of transactions. Although admittedly I think the last Budget took its toll, and I am not particularly looking forward to the next one! I am also mindful that the effects of AI has perhaps not yet taken hold within the commercial property sector. Some recruiters I speak with are advising apprenticeship opportunities this year are down 60% (as a result of AI), so if there are fewer entry level desk-based jobs already, might this result in another change of how the market utilises space.
At OMEETO, do you have a particular specialism?
OMEETO are at the coal face of Commercial Property Agency. We service a range of sales or lettings across Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. Our specialism is cutting edge, leading property marketing, that utilises the latest industry technology to best present Commercial property to market. We feel giving the market the information it needs at the outset helps reduce marketing periods and increases the pros- pects of smooth completion. With a focus on Agency, I do miss the revenue that professional or management work could bring. When I started the company however, I had a clear vision of establishing the brand as an Agent before considering other avenues. I did not want to spread resources too thinly or get distracted by jobs outside
Can you tell us about a memorable project that you have been involved with recently?
This has got to be our 90,000 sq ft letting in Sandiacre last month. We managed to retain a major business within the region, who was otherwise about to relocate to the West Midlands. The deal delighted our client too; they had recently scaled back operations so welcomed the additional income.
for more details please visit
www.omeeto.co.uk
As mentioned earlier, I feel there has been some price adjustment; the post COVID stampede of Cash Buyers has gone, the market has had to absorb regular increases in build costs, finance costs etc and we have all had to deal with the budget. As a result we have seen an increase in investors chasing 10% yields, but despite challenges the market has faced, such opportunities are few and far between. There remains limited stock and quality opportunities still attract a premium. The star of the show of course remains industrial. OMEETO has not had much exposure to the new big box market, but we have generally found good demand for small to medium sized industrial lots. Due to the cost of building vs local values, there has been limited development of smaller industrial units in Derbyshire and those con- structed built to shell only. As a result we have seen pent-up demand for well fitted, quality, modern second-hand units. If offered for sale such units don’t hang around long, the last one we put to market received robust offers on the day of launch.
Where are you seeing the most occupier activity right now?
We have exposure to a broad mix of properties, and this includes a portfolio of flexible offices. The fees individually are not exciting, but we do enough volume to make it work. Currently there seems to be a stream of businesses looking for flexible office accommodation, with main demand coming from the care sector. Despite a slower start to the year for the mid-sized industrial units, we have recently seen an upturn in activity and have just let 150,000 sq ft across three units. We have a number of unsatisfied requirements for such units and are actively looking for more stock.
Chesterfield’s £2 billion regeneration
Chesterfield is one of the most exciting growth areas in the East Midlands – with an ambitious £2 billion regeneration programme. The borough includes a wide range of investment-ready opportu- nities across housing, town centre regeneration, green industries, advanced manufacturing, retail, leisure, and tourism. Chesterfield’s prospects are further boosted by its central location, forward think- ing council and exceptional connections to the road and rail networks.
Home to over 3,300 businesses, which benefit from a strong tal- ent pipeline supported by nearby university cities. With two sites included in the East Midlands Investment Zone companies in green technologies and advanced manufacturing can benefit from financial incentives that will help ensure they see a return on their investment.
The area’s manufacturing sector is enhanced by the highly suc- cessful Markham Vale enterprise zone which is home to dozens of businesses and exemplifies the strategic commercial opportunities
COMMERCIAL PROPERTY MONTHLY 2025
available in Chesterfield. But the borough is not just about commer- cial space with an ongoing major transformation, creating vibrant opportunities for new homes, leisure, retail, hotel developments, and modern office space.
Chesterfield and Staveley are undergoing transformational town centre regeneration, to create upgraded public spaces that attract businesses and visitors alike. This work is creating a range of oppor- tunities for experiential retail, food & drink and leisure businesses. Housing delivery has doubled in the last decade and the borough is aiming to bring forward 500 homes per year over the next fif- teen years. 100% of planning applications for housing decided by Chesterfield Borough Council were granted in 2024. Chesterfield was also recently named as one of the happiest places to live in the UK and the choice of housing, local facilities, culture and green spaces, make the town an ideal place for people to relocate to and build a life for themselves.
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