A record year for JLL’s industrial team in Bristol has led to the company appointing two new members to the team.
The team’s turnover was up by 22 per cent in 2015 compared with the previous year as a result of strong demand from occupiers in Bristol and the wider region.
Ross Wigley, who has been with JLL’s office agency team for the last three years, is moving to the industrial side of the business and Hannah Eshelby, who is studying for a real estate management degree, has joined on the graduate scheme and will be with the team for two years.
The industrial team advised on 73 deals last year, amounting to 1.8 million sq ft – the equivalent of more than 23 Wembley football pitches.
Over the last 12 months, JLL has advised on probably the largest speculative industrial scheme ever seen in Bristol – the new 65-acre business park at the former Rolls-Royce East Works site in Filton. The team also advised retailer The Range on its purchase of the 55-acre site at Central Park in Avonmouth for its new South of England distribution centre. It is likely to be one of the biggest logistics deals this year in the UK which will see the development of a distribution warehouse amounting to almost 1.2 million sq ft.
Giles Weir, director of JLL’s industrial team in Bristol, said: “It’s fantastic to have Ross and Hannah on board as we enter another busy year. The development pipeline is looking healthy with the former Rolls-Royce site in Filton accounting for around 600,000 sq ft (equivalent to 13 football fields) of speculative development alone.
“Our work goes far beyond Bristol stretching from Tewkesbury to the north, across into Wiltshire and down to Taunton. We have a strong track record across all markets in this region and the addition of Ross and Hannah to the team will be invaluable in this rising market.”
The industrial team is currently advising on around 1,200 acres of storage or distribution development land across the region and it is marketing a further 1.6 million sq ft of industrial and warehouse space.
