More than 100,000 sq ft of new requirements have been launched in Manchester following a spike in regional leasing activity.
Swiss sustainable agri-business Sygenta and the National Computing Centre have each launched 40,000 sq ft requirements, while Aldermore bank is looking for 15,000 sq ft.
The new requirements come on the back of an exceptional end to 2014 for the UK’s major office markets.
Take-up in the nine largest UK cities outside London hit almost 2m sq ft in Q4 2014, according to GVA’s latest Big Nine report, a 70% increase on the five-year quarterly average.
Take-up in Manchester hit 382,678 sq ft in the final quarter of 2014 – well above the long-term average of 253,334 sq ft.
But the northern powerhouse was surpassed by Bristol, where take-up leapt to more than 400,000 sq ft – more than three times the five-year quarterly average of 131,721 sq ft.
GVA national head of offices Carl Potter said the strong performance came despite falling levels of supply.
Companies are looking to launch requirements to secure space in a supply-starved market and ahead of anticipated rental growth.
Manchester inward investment agency MIDAS is assisting Sygenta with its requirement; OBI Property is advising the National Computing Centre.
