Monthly Archives: October 2020

is your commercial real estate agent willing to collaborate

Is your commercial real estate agent willing to collaborate?

In order to achieve a favourable outcome, your commercial real estate agent should be willing to collaborate with other agencies and specialist consultants.

This collaboration offers clients access to a range of complementary services, the knowledge and networks of expert professionals, and positions them with the best possible chance for a successful and streamlined deal.

Knowledge and network

While not all deals require collaboration, it is often in a client’s best interest to have access to a range of specialists who can help streamline the deal process, says Pine Property’s Patrick Kelleher.

“Often a deal is much more complicated than just matching a landlord with a tenant. We collaborate with a range of parties on a daily basis.”

“When challenges arise, it is helpful to be able to collaborate with and leverage the expertise of specialist consultants in order to get a deal across the line. It’s all about that knowledge and network.”

Landlords or tenants often benefit from their commercial real estate agent being willing to collaborate with other agents and professional consultants including architects, solicitors, financial advisors, tax accountants, brand designers, private certifiers, surveyors, buyers agents, and more.

A holistic approach increases the likelihood of a successful and streamlined deal.

Inter-agency collaboration

Some deals may benefit from the collaboration of multiple real estate agencies. Traditionally, both residential and commercial agents have been reluctant to work with competing agencies as they do not want to appear unable to manage the deal on their own.

However, in some instances matching the local expertise and network of a boutique agency with the multi-national reach of an international agency may achieve the best result for all parties, particularly in the sale or lease of high value assets.

Recently Pine Property collaborated with multi-national agency, Colliers, in the collective sale of six units as a potential residential development site on Manly’s beachfront.

Through Pine Property’s local knowledge and network and Colliers’ international reach, 92 North Steyne was well positioned for a mutually beneficial outcome for the client.

“If it is in the best interest of the client to collaborate with another agency then we will do it. In this instance partnering with Colliers made the most sense in order to achieve the best possible outcome”, Patrick says.

Other specialist collaborations:

One of the benefits of being a boutique agency is the ability to collaborate with a range of local third party specialists for particular projects. Through Pine Property’s specialist local network, tenants and landlords can be introduced to complementary specialists who can streamline the deal process.

Whether you need an architect, solicitor, financial advisor, tax accountant, brand designer, private certifier, surveyor or buyers’ agent, Pine Property has connections to help you secure or sell a property.

Some examples of specialist advisors we collaborate with include:

Buyers’ agents: Pine Property has a strong network of specialist, local and international buyers’ agents with cashed-up clients ready to buy. We regularly work with these buyers’ agents to secure off-market sales for clients.

Lawyers: Both tenants and landlords benefit from having access to the specialist knowledge of a good local lawyer. By leveraging local expertise of the area, commercial property market, council controls and contacts, then clients – whether sellers, purchasers or tenants – can increase their chances of securing a positive outcome.

Town planners: Having a direct line to a town planner throughout the deal process can be hugely helpful for clients purchasing or leasing a commercial property. The guidance, advice and assistance of a town planner maximises the likelihood of council approval for any development or change of use.

How COVID is permanently changing retail

How COVID is permanently changing retail

COVID has seen some retail businesses boom and devastated others. It has accelerated the trend online, changed tenancy mixes and highlighted the importance of brand narratives and regional strategies.

Home-service retailers have done well out of COVID-19. From homewares to renovations, people have been spending big, while fashion, tourism and service-based industries are hurting.

The reasons are obvious, according to Brian Walker, retail consulting expert and managing director of the Retail Doctor Group.

“We can’t travel, we can’t socialise and we are spending more time at home,” Brian said.

These same reasons have led to a boom in online retail, from an average of around 9 per cent of sales pre-Covid to an average of 14 per cent in October 2020.

Online research has also gone through the roof. We are researching 90 per cent of larger retail purchases online – from fashion items and fridges to computers and cars – up from around 70 per cent pre-Covid, according to Brian.

And 80 per cent of that research is being done on a phone.

“We spend an average of four hours a day on smartphones. That’s a large percentage  cent of our waking hours.”

“We are more educated than ever and if we are not buying online, we are walking into stores more knowledgeable.”

How to attract customers in the new normal

“The days of products sitting on racks in boring retail stores are numbered,” Brian said.

“Unless people have a compelling reason to go to your shop they will buy online or from a competitor.”

“People go to physical retail that is interesting, educational or fun. Retail that is novel.”

“Retailers require a good online offer, matched with interesting stories in store,” he said, giving the example of Patagonia.

“Consumers want relationships with brands. They want trust, loyalty and security, and to belong to a tribe.”

COVID has also seen a rise of “community” that retailers must align with.

“The really clever retailers are the ones thinking about this strategy and investing in online, physical experience, training people and adapting their business model.”

Advising impacted retailers on how they can ride out the current challenging conditions, Brian encourages them to go back to basics.

“Treat every customer like gold. Make sure there is an offer for them to come back to and focus on the basics of relationship: training staff in sales and service, great looking shops, eye contact and a smile.”

The return of the high street

Brian forecasts that the rise of local, community retail brought on by Covid will see the return of the high street, however stresses the critical importance of managing this effectively.

“The dramatic decline in tourism numbers that retailers rely on in places like Manly is leading to more empty shops and a requirement for landlords to adjust their rental expectations.”

“Who can afford Manly’s current asking rents? National chains. Not local, individual, characteristic retailers,” Brian said,

“As a result, we are seeing asset managers rethinking their portfolios and working more actively with retailers and adjusting rents in many cases.”

However, there is the risk that without a cohesive regional tenancy mix strategy, high streets will fail to fulfil their potential, which ends up eroding the value of that strip for everyone.

A regional strategy and narrative are required

There is an ongoing opportunity to develop collegiate trategically with owner bodies, councils and Chambers of Commerce to create the thematic of an area expressed in community events, tenancy mixes, and so on according to Brian.

“What is the three-to-five-year retail strategy? Regions need to do more to inspire localism in their communities,” Brian said.

Speaking of Manly he asked: “What is the character and flavour of Manly’s retail? What outcomes do we want? What character do we want it to have? What makes it unique?”

“The challenge for Manly – and many communities – is that property ownership is fragmented, with different parties all wanting to achieve slightly different, and in some cases conflicting outcomes.”

“Ultimately the market decides but sometimes it needs guidance, and it may need boundaries.”