3PLs at vanguard of property take-up in 2024

By Liza Helps Property Editor Logistics Matters

TAKE-UP totalled 7.6 million ft2 and was 33% ahead of the 5.7 million ft2 3PL’s typically took per annum prior to Covid (2007-19)

DTRE head of research, data and insights Robert Taylor said: “This does suggest that the retailers were perhaps seeking to satisfy demand in shorter term, less capital intensive 3PL space with greater flexibility over future certainty of demand for space.”

Overall Big Box take-up for 2024 reached 28.6 million ft2, 13% ahead of 2023’s 25.3 million ft2 and 17% ahead of the ‘Pre-Covid’ average (2007-19).

In terms of geographies, the East Midlands dominated take-up accounting for 30% with the supply constrained North West seeing just 2.4 million ft2 of take-up and the lowest level of take-up DTRE have recorded since 2009. Albeit with only 7.9 million ft2 of available standing stock, the North West has the least amount of supply of all the core regions (South East & London 8.8m ft2 West Midlands 8.9m ft2; East Midlands 12.7m ft2; Yorks & Humber 9.3m ft2), and just three new buildings available bigger than 200,000 ft2.

The DTRE Big Box Vacancy rate (all units over 100,000 sq ft) did tick up slightly through the Q4 2024 and now stands at 7.2%, up from 6.9%. This was predominantly due to 1.35 million ft2 of ‘New’/Grade A product coming to the market while there was also an increase in Grade B space of 425,000 ft2. Total supply stands at 54.35 million ft2, up 15% year-on-year.

Looking through 2025, the research noted that the pipeline of modern Grade A product coming forward for 2025 continues to look relatively sparse. DTRE is currently tracking 9.5 million ft2 of speculatively built Big Box (100,000 sq ft +) units that will be completed in 2025, which is down 25% on the annual average of 12.6 million ft2 of new spec development completions seen in each year from 2018 – 2024.

The largest number of new units is set to be delivered in units between 100-200,000 sq ft (16 units) but overall there’s a good spread across the other size ranges with Panattoni’s 770,000 sq ft Panattoni Park Central A1(M) scheme in Harworth and GLP’s MPN761 at Magna Park Lutterworth the two biggest developments scheduled to complete in 2025.