1 For immediate release
Finding Success in Market Variability, Making Innovation in Future Partnerships —— Wheelock Square Grows Together with its Tenants
According to estimates, central Shanghai's super grade A office building market is set to expect a further 701,800 square meters of new developments this year. Recent figures disclosed by DTZ show that China has attracted over USD 46 billion (approximately RMB 285.5 billion) of the world's real estate capital. On one hand, increased supply has resulted in fierce competition, and on the other, the inflow of multinational companies appears to be once more aimed at the follow-up value-added services of super grade A office buildings in first-tier cities. But is such huge market variability good or bad news for Shanghai's high-end office market in 2015? And where should developments go from here? Who better to ask than Mr. Dave Siu, who, as the head of Wheelock Square, is the prime decision maker behind an office building that is one of the foremost benchmarks of the industry and the epitome of super grade A offices in the core Shanghai CBD.
In the eyes of Mr. Siu, who has been frequently flying between Shanghai and Hong Kong since 2007, Shanghai's position as a first-tier city of China has never been in dispute, and it has consistently offered the best investment environment. As the 'dragon's head' of the Yangtze River Delta, Shanghai's economic position has been beyond doubt for many years. "Although Shanghai's office market will face a tremendous amount of new variables in 2015, as a first-tier city office market, it still possesses ample reserves and offers good long-term growth. Particularly in the super first-tier cities like Shanghai and Beijing, if a foreign company is operating in China, then it will still choose to be headquartered here." In addition to being positive about the overall market, Mr. Siu, who is the head of Wheelock Square, has always emphasized optimism with regard to his projects. This is probably the macroscopic view and magnanimity of a mature leader.
2 Shanghai Wheelock Square stands tall in Jing'an District
Mr. Siu also has his own take on possible vacancy rate issues as a result of the economic slowdown: it's inevitable that a large influx of new developments into the market will be accompanied by difficulties in filling occupancy - but vacancy rates will not remain high in a market with favorable prospects. Specifically, the outlook for Shanghai is not a cause for concern. With soaring demand in Shanghai's Central Business District, high-quality developments in the city center will hold an unshakeable position as land resources become increasingly scarce. As a result, mature super grade A office buildings in the heart of the city face relatively less pressure. As long as such buildings respond to changes in a correct and timely manner, problems with occupancy rates can be minimized. Take Wheelock Square, for example: a benchmark among grade A office buildings in the Puxi Central Business District, it has maintained constant growth since opening four years ago. In particular since 2013, the total annual rental income has risen in line with group projections for three consecutive years. Wheelock Square currently has an occupancy rate of over 95%, with an average rental of RMB365-465 per square meter per month. Tenants do occasionally move out of the city center for objective reasons, but this also frees up more space for the expansion of other tenants that are renewing their lease. In Mr. Siu's opinion, in the past the economy has always grown, and the current slowdown isn't necessarily a bad thing; it will encourage some companies to reflect upon their operations.
Wheelock Square has been a firmly established part of Shanghai's high-end office market for a number of years. Its dual identity as both a developer and an operator has given it a familiarity with market demand and an understanding of its own advantages that allows it to adopt a different mentality for each customer group. This mentality changes according to fluctuations in the market, and Wheelock Square works hand-in-hand with top enterprises in order to create
3 long-term and stable partnerships. For the foreign enterprises and full-floor tenants that make up over 80% of its clients, Wheelock Square offers a first-class office environment, attentive service, convenient transport links and a supporting set of commercial facilities. What's more, using its premium image and positioning as well as spheres of influence, it is able to meet the needs of these major companies' long-term site selection strategies. It is certain that rent cannot continue to rise, and at a suitable time, Wheelock Square will discuss with tenants about formulating sensible and sustainable leasing programs, whilst also continuing to optimize its service standards and maintaining its status as a provider of excellent service. After having enjoyed first-class service standards, many tenants and their employees find themselves unwilling to put up with anything less. They are likely to discover a considerable discrepancy when they compare Wheelock Square to what else is on offer. “Sticking to what we do best, and bringing our customers satisfactory value-added services at the same price - that's best way to secure existing tenants," said Mr. Siu delivering Wheelock Square's philosophy.
Being awarded the Golden Key International Certification, Wheelock Square is committed to providing a satisfactory and super-value user experience to its customers through its world-class service.
For new clients, Wheelock Square adopts a case-by-case leasing policy. It provides tailor-made solutions for individual tenants: if the tenant has a prestigious, well-known brand and the potential for continued growth, Wheelock Square will evaluate its leasing policy through a
4 personalized case study, after which it will provide rent concessions in order to jointly create business value for both sides. Wheelock Square also offers unique benefits for merchants in the North and South annex. Wheelock Square helps to arrange events and other forms of promotion to support them when they open for business, actively promote merchants to tenants and white collar professionals in order to enhance their reputation in the Jing'an Business District and the rest of Shanghai. Wheelock Square also offers strong support for merchants' day-to-day operations, providing targeted marketing services and suggestions for the three merchant. As a result, it creates a shared platform and favorable sales environment for merchants that achieve win-win benefits.
Wheelock Square has also covered all the bases for the inevitable tenant restructuring that will occur in the future. Firstly, It will continue to pay attention to the trend for startups. It will not rush to restructure, but will also sensibly link market demand with its own advantages, and will make periodic adjustments. If serviced offices within the building require a larger area in order to expand their business and meet the needs of startups, Wheelock Square will do all it can to accommodate. In the next phase, Wheelock Square shall provide a super grade A office operating platform that is more service-oriented, more functional, more practical, and offers more incubator-style facilities. It will also roll out a mature and robust service upgrade program. Secondly, with regard to rapidly-emerging financial tenants, Wheelock Square will continue to make judicious choices and maintain an objective approach. At the same time as welcoming high quality tenants, it will not engage in cut-throat competition. Whilst scrupulously examining important standards such as the business data, years of establishment, business scope, stability and operational practices of new tenants, Wheelock Square will make careful choices in order to maintain the its high-quality clientele. With regard to agglomeration in the leasing industry, Wheelock Square has indicated that it won't try to force the market, but will play a supportive role.
When facing market change, Wheelock Square's optimism comes from being a mature office building and not blindly altering its original offering every time the market changes. Always maintaining its core value and competitiveness is Wheelock Square's unbeatable formula for overcoming risk.
—— End —— News Materials
About Wheelock Square
Wheelock square is 270 meters tall and located at 1717 Nanjing West Road. It is the tallest building in Puxi. The building has a total floor area of 150,000 square meters. The main building has a total 61 floors, of which 50 are offices. There are also two annex buildings providing
high-5 end retail and dining facilities. The building was developed by Wharf Group and designed by New York architectural firm Kohn Pederson Fox.
Thanks to its iconic architecture, sustainable building concepts, superb location, world-class property management services and leading support services, it has attracted a large number of top international tenants, setting the industry benchmark for high-class offices in Shanghai. The quality of this building has been well-recognized within the international architectural community. Between 2011 and 2012 it won the 2011 MIPIM Asia Awards Bronze Award for Best Commercial Center and the 2012 Quality Building Award. In 2013, thanks to its forward-planning and significant investment in sustainable investment, the building won three prestigious finance and economics platform awards. It has also received the unanimous approval of tenants, setting the standard in China's office market. In 2014, it was selected for the Golden Key International Alliance (GKIA)'s Best Luxurious Commercial Property Award, Luxury Attitude Award, and Luxury Collection Property Award. And on Jan, 2015, Wheelock Square was formally authorized by GKIA. Thanks to the outstanding quality of our property and services and the communicability of our brand, we are the indisputable leader of office buildings in China and have also been recognized internationally.
Website：http://www.wheelocksquare.com
About Wharf Holdings Limited
Wharf Holdings Limited was founded in 1886 and is a listed subsidiary of Wheelock and Company Limited. The strategic focus of Wharf is real estate development, and its operations are centered around land acquisition, financing, development planning, design and marketing. The group leads the way in outstanding commercial management. Quality investment property is the backbone of the Wharf business model. Harbour City and Times Square are at the core of our high quality property investments. During the second half of this year, key profits from the group's property investments rose 19% to HKD 3.751 billion and its book value was almost HKD 70 billion – putting it among the world’s top three real estate companies. Wharf continues to actively build and purchase assets in China based on its vision of 'Building tomorrow'. They are spread across 15 cities and cover an area of approximately 11.1 million square meters. The group is actively expanding its hotel business, and has a portfolio of 13 owned or managed Marco Polo Hotels across the Asia Pacific. A further 10 hotels are also due to be completed during the next five years, and the group’s assets in China also include several major ports.
6 investment properties. In its China land bank, Wharf has more than two million square meters of investment property. Following its successfully construction of a number of landmark properties in China including Shanghai's Wheelock Square and the Times Squares of Chongqing, Dalian, Shanghai, Suzhou and Wuxi, the group is also currently constructing five IFS projects based on Hong Kong Harbour City in Changsha, Chengdu, Chongqing, Suzhou and Wuxi. Of these, the Chengdu IFS, which occupies 10,000 square meters and houses more than 20 flagship shopping centers, was officially opened in January 2014 and is a landmark of Western China.
