A new decade is looming, in just a few days’ time we’ll be in 2020. But before we get there I’d like to take a little look back at 2019 through the pages of EG. It has been a tremendous year for me, taking over as editor, launching the Future Leaders project, getting to wear light-up gold hightops on stage at The Grosvenor House…
It has also been a year when, at the same time as delivering you daily news and intelligence online, we’ve cut through the noise of fast news and provided you a weekly product to really get your teeth into. A weekly digest where you can grab a cuppa and a biscuit, sit down and actually read, learn, enjoy and feel proud about the work that real estate does.
So, to finish the year and give you an excuse to grab that last mince pie and have another read, here are my news, views and interviews from the 48 printed editions we created just for you this year.
Enjoy!
5 January
Then exchequer secretary to the Treasury Robert Jenrick gave the keynote at EG’s Growth Corridor event and outlined his ambitions for the Cambridge, Milton Keynes, Oxford arc, saying it was “not just one of the greatest opportunities in the UK, but one of the world’s greatest economic opportunities”. Will the government deliver? Read more >>
12 January
This was when the Future Leaders project really started. After a purposely provocative rant by yours truly about the need for women to put their hands up and get noticed at property events, we launched a survey looking into what was getting in the way. A need for training was singled out as a major issue. We pledged to help. Read more >>
19 January
The build-to-rent boom took off in the regions, with the rate of homes being developed in Manchester, Birmingham and the wider Midlands catching up with London. Read more >>
26 January
We had a cheeky look at exactly how much of the high street Mike Ashley would end up owning if he bought HMV. It was a lot for one man/company. Read more >>
2 February
EG’s tech editor and head of special projects Emily Wright went on holiday to Finland and came back with an article showcasing what placemaking really can and should be. This look at Helsinki’s Central Library Oodi shows how real estate can create connections. Read more >>
9 February
London mayor Sadiq Khan is not known for making much time in his diary for real estate professionals, let alone the property press – unless you’re EG’s residential expert Emma Rosser. Read more >>
16 February
When it comes to how tech is impacting, aiding and transforming the real estate sector, EG always delivers interviews with those who are leading the way. Including former eBay executive RJ Pittman, who at Matterport wants to create a 3D digital twin for every building in the world. Read more >>
23 February
The value, size and influence of the global real estate market is truly astounding. Every year, EG takes a look at the top 100 global real estate owning firms to try to measure its size. In 2019, Chinese real estate companies continued to dominate. The total portfolio value of the top 100 was a whopping $5.5tn. Read more >>
2 March
London editor Louise Dransfield managed to crowbar S&M into a look at why the South Bank has become such a hotspot for investment. Intrigued? Then have a read. Read more >>
9 March
Retail, leisure and logistics editor Pui-Guan Man spoke to the man who snapped up The Postings, the half-empty mall in Kirkcaldy that Columbia Threadneedle offered at auction for just £1, about his plans to bring it back to life. Read more >>
16 March
When you think of developers that have changed the face of the country, London & Continental Railways doesn’t immediately spring to mind. But it probably should. Outgoing chief executive David Joy spoke to EG about why it has been one of the most prolific developers of the past 20 years. Read more >>
23 March
Plans to introduce social housing to BTR developments in the London Plan did not go down well, with many suggesting it could be the difference between success and failure. Read more >>
30 March
Q1 2019 was the worst ever quarter for shopping centre investments. Just £37m was traded, according to Radius Data Exchange figures, compared with £466m in the same period a year earlier. Ouch. Read more >>
6 April
This was the moment for me when real estate really started to value its people. It has long talked about itself as a people business, but never really demonstrated that on a grand scale. Until the Sultan of Brunei introduced some hideous laws. Read more >>
13 April
Channel 4 was one of the big regional occupational stories of the year. EG spoke to the broadcaster’s head of workspace to find out how to create the ultimate creative workspace, the tricks of successful change management and the power of the Channel 4 brand. Read more >>
20 April
If you have a smartphone in your pocket, then you’re a surveyor. Or so said Ed Parsons, the man behind Google Maps, in his interview with EG. Read more >>
27 April
In a very uncharacteristic move, I wrote about the benefits of sitting still. Prompted by US investor Realty Income’s debut acquisition in the UK – a £429m portfolio of Sainsbury’s supermarkets from British Land – I pondered on whether a patient and probably quite boring approach to property could bring about plentiful returns. Read more >>
4 May
It was definitely not a case of “may the force” (sorry) be with you for retail and BTR investors looking for debt in this issue of EG. The Cass Business School’s Commercial Real Estate Lending report showed, unsurprisingly, that retail was the most expensive asset class to finance, while lending to residential dropped by £1bn. Read more >>
11 May
Mitsubishi Estate has been developing London offices for three decades, but as revealed to EG, the Japanese giant is ready to diversify. Read more >>
18 May
EG’s head of retail research (and oft-seen and heard BBC retail expert) James Child crunched the numbers to find out who exactly owns the UK high street. And although he owns a lot of the brands, it was not Mike Ashley. Read more >>
25 May
Despite the slowdown in investment activity as the Brexit shambles dragged on, Almacantar’s Mike Hussey brought a whopper to market – Southbank Place, SE1 – for £875m – a 3.89% yield. The sale of the property, home to oil giant Shell and (at the time) the biggest WeWork in the world, was eventually pulled. Read more >>
1 June
We launched the Future Female Leaders project, easily my proudest moment of the year. In 2020, we’ll be running two more programmes. Read more >>
8 June
Slovakian developer JTRE wants to be just like HB Reavis and make a name for itself in London. Managing director Pavel Pelikán told EG why it was selling off its Eastern European assets to focus on the UK capital. Read more >>
15 June
I got caught up in the whirlwind that is a day in the life of Appear Here founder Ross Bailey. His enthusiasm is infectious and in a world where we love to talk about the demise of retail, sometimes a positive outlook for the future of shopping is needed… even for us cynical journalists. Read more >>
22 June
If you’re a Singaporean media company, the next logical step in your growth is to invest in UK purpose-built student housing, right? Well, it is for Singaporean Press Holdings, the publisher of Singapore’s Business Times and The Straits Times. Pui-Guan Man caught up with Hwee Song Chua, chief financial officer of the firm’s real estate division. Read more >>
29 June
Local authorities have spent more than £7.6bn on real estate over the past six years, according to Radius Data Exchange figures. Spelthorne Council has been the biggest spender and it has worked out well for the authority, with property income matching council tax receipts. Read more >>
6 July
A major British Property Federation survey of the sector showed that barely anyone outside of real estate understands what it does and why it matters. And the majority of Joe Public doesn’t like you. It was the start of property’s long journey to change it perception… hopefully with a little help from Team EG along the way. Read more >>
13 July
EG headed to Manchester for a “Future of” event. And the city didn’t disappoint. “We’re as good as London,” it said, “better, arguably.” Read more >>
20 July
Anyone who likes to break the rules a bit and is happy to admit when they’ve made the wrong decision is alright by me, which is why this interview with Coen van Oostrom had the Edge as my favourite slice of content from this week’s edition. Read more >>
27 July
One training session in and the Future Female Leaders are already inspiring. We find out exactly what our 12 future leaders want to deliver through EG’s unique programme. Read more >>
3 August
I made no secret of my excitement that PY Gerbeau was back in the UK property game, especially after I had not so long ago complained of a lack of personalities in the industry. We sent Pui-Guan Man off to meet him. He didn’t disappoint. Read more >>
17 August
This was the week we finally got to have a read of WeWork’s IPO prospectus. It was a journalist’s dream. Full of mind-boggling fodder. EG’s new deputy editor, Tim Burke, rationalised it down the to most phenomenal, must-read elements. Read more >>
31 August
Sometimes in an interview, your subject says something that you underline at least five times. Sometimes your interviewee is so passionate and honest that they let you quote them on that eyebrow-raising sentence. In this issue that was London Union founder John Downey saying “We’ve got to kill all the politicians.” Figuratively speaking, of course. Read more >>
7 September
Every year EG selects a group of Rising Stars, a selection of under-35-year-olds who have the potential to shape the future of the real estate sector. Past Rising Stars have included Ross Bailey, Reza Merchant, Savannah de Savary, Laurence Kemball-Cook, Oli Farago and Tripty Ayra among others. Read more >>
14 September
Infrastructure is integral to development and regeneration and while the future of HS2 hangs in the balance, EG’s Lucy Alderson investigated the cost of a “no-go” decision on the new rail line. Read more >>
21 September
An exclusive investigation by EG’s Emma Rosser revealed a £1bn micro-flats industry. It was a balanced look at the troubling truth behind how permitted development has allowed some so-called developers to deliver homes that really aren’t fit for purpose. Read more >>
28 September
I’ll confess I love a Lush. I didn’t always. The aroma of the shops was a little overpowering for me and I never was a fan of a bath bomb. But its approach to sustainability gets me hook, line and sinker, which is why this interview with global property boss Paul Wheatley is definitely worth a Christmas read. Read more >>
5 October
A lot of the nationals wrote about the exodus of money from UK funds in the closing weeks of 2019, at EG we’d been bringing you the news and serving up the warnings months before. September marked the 12 consecutive month of outflows, and Tim Burke had all the figures for you. Read more >>
12 October
When CBRE said it was buying Telford Homes in July, we all had a double take. You what? We said. Have I read that right? Yes, you had. And once the deal had completed EG got the exclusive interview with CBRE’s global chief executive for real estate investments, Danny Queenan, to find out exactly what its thinking behind the acquisition was. Read more >>
19 October
Last one from me on the Future Leaders project, I promise. But they only went and bloody did it. And captivated an audience of 400. Twelve amazing women, sharing amazing stories, powerfully and completely unaided. I found 12 new heroes. I hope you did too. Read more >>
26 October
The EG Awards – my first as editor – was both nerve-racking and overwhelmingly rewarding. We were able to celebrate so much of the difference that real estate can and is making in the world. It was powerful. It was also fun. And sartorially superior… especially in the shoe department. Read more >>
2 November
Flat-packs are a bit like Marmite I suppose, you either love them or you hate them. But have you ever thought about the flat-pack concept being a potential solution to the housing crisis or current retail turmoil. I hadn’t either, until EG’s Emma Rosser interviewed Jonas Spangenberg, chief executive of Sweden’s BoKlok. Read more >>
9 November
I had to give huge kudos to the British Property Federation this week after attending its annual dinner at London’s Guildhall. Kudos because the guest speaker was BBC journalist Amol Rajan who stood up in front of a largely white, middle-class audience and spoke about the very real and very big class gap that exists across industry. Real estate has come a long way on its journey to be more diverse, but still has such a long way to go when it comes to social backgrounds. Read more >>
16 November
After 40 years of service, one of London’s most trusted advisers decided it was time to retire. EG sat down with CBRE’s Stephen Hubbard to find out how to forge a successful career in real estate – and why he won’t be attending any special retirement bashes. Read more >>
23 November
It’s not just Iceland the country that is working hard to combat climate change, Richard Walker, boss of the frozen-food retailer, is on his own mission too. Iceland last year became the first major retailer to pledge to eliminate plastic packaging for its own-brand products by 2023, and now Walker, through his company Bywater Properties, wants to bring the sustainable ethos to development. EG’s Anna Ward found out more. Read more >>
30 November
There isn’t just one piece of content you should read from this issue, you need to read it all. This was our special mental health edition. An edition of the magazine that laid bare the shocking truth behind the mental health of the real estate industry and pledge to do something to help. Read more >>
7 December
Tech editor Emily Wright made it abundantly clear in her leader this week that if you feel you are unaffected by, are uninspired or uninterested by the role of technology in real estate then you are in trouble. In this tech-focused issue of EG we brought you everything you needed to know from MIPIM Proptech in NYC, interviews with GPE and Bosch, the impact of AI on the industry, the rise of “cloud kitchens”, and, of course, a helpful 10 tech contacts you need in your little black book (or WhatsApp contacts). Read more >>
14 December
Our final printed issue of the year, terribly timed for the results of the General Election but still full of informative, intelligent and useful content to help you in the business of real estate. And, as the Conservatives came out on top after we all headed to the polls on 12 December, EG’s James Child crunched the numbers to find out that the Tories also topped the list when it came to delivering for real estate… at least when it comes to planning. Read more >>
To send feedback, e-mail samantha.mcclary@egi.co.uk or tweet @samanthamcclary or @estatesgazette
