To further support our clients as they navigate the effects of COVID-19 on their businesses and their recovery, Colliers Real Estate Management Services (REMS) initiated a national sentiment assessment of the tenants in our managed portfolio, surveying 445 tenants. Of the tenants surveyed, 163 were office tenants, 148 were retail tenants, and 134 were industrial tenants across 66 million square feet of commercial real estate in Canada.
In the last couple of weeks, we have released three separate reports dedicated to the retail, office, and industrial asset classes based on our findings. You can download the previously released retail report here and the previously released office report here.
The third report in our three-part series, Industrial Recovery: Regulations, Permanent Closures and Operational Changes, focuses on how industrial tenants have responded to government regulations and their associated costs, approached possible permanent business closures and shifted operating plans.
Key Takeaways:
- Industrial tenants are 1.3x more likely to consider offering new products or services compared to retail or office businesses
- With ongoing physical distancing measures and an increased reliability on e-commerce, future demand for fulfillment centres could continue to climb
- Due to the nature of the business, industrial tenants have largely embraced shift work to ensure physical distancing, thus increasing operating hours
- Looking forward, industrial tenants are considering the expanded use of automation to address expensive labour and physical distancing requirements
- 6% of industrial tenants said they have plans to permanently close their businesses, compared to 10% of retail tenants and 4% of office tenants
- Local manufacturing could see a steady increase as the world is set to see less globalization, especially for essential products
