Thematic growth strategies

Industrial & Logistics

Logistics will grow globally driven by structural and behavioural shifts in consumer patterns and increasing reliance on supply chains. Near-shoring and the need for domestic supply chain resilience will create further opportunities in more developed logistics markets: In North America with particular growth in manufacturing, in Europe driven by urban logistics, and in Asia-Pacific the continuing e-commerce boom amid urbanization and dense large population centres. The increasing importance and resilience of supply chains will impact all markets.

Living

The living sector is experiencing growth for many reasons. Global populations are growing and becoming more urban, meaning cities require more homes, with a broader range of household types and sizes needed. Innovative living solutions will provide some new supply to meet this demand. Further institutionalization of the sector will be driven by Japan, China and Australia in Asia-Pacific, and parts of Europe including the UK, France, Spain and Italy, where market maturity remains well below the current levels of the US and Canada. Capacity for institutional beds is high and supply is low, creating significant opportunity. Student housing and single-family rental will also be growth areas.

Data Centres

Data centre development and investment are currently dominated by specialist players, but large institutional, cross-sector investors are increasingly seeking exposure due to long-term growth potential. Cloud-based data storage and processing are growing consistently, and AI adoption is accelerating this, but growth is currently limited by supply shortages.

New opportunities will emerge with technological and societal shifts, as CRE deepens further and expands into new areas. With many cities and companies shifting to cleaner energy solutions, there is growing need for manufacturing, distribution, and infrastructure for solar, wind, and hydro networks. Demand for renewable energy real estate assets has been on a significant upward trend, and climate targets are mandating that half of all buildings’ used energy will come from renewable sources.

The energy transition extends beyond buildings: The surge in electric vehicle usage has escalated the need for supporting infrastructure, requiring not only a substantial expansion of the current public charging stations and a considerable investment in battery manufacturing facilities.

And the growth of advanced manufacturing for robotics, automation, nanotechnology and many other sectors will increase demand for facilities for research & development, manufacturing and distribution. Real estate will undoubtedly develop to support the future commercialization of these and other new technologies.