In Europe, logistics real estate is growing fast. In recent years, it has become a coveted asset class. The panel discussion, titled “From Revolution to Evolution – the Rise of Logistics as an Asset Class,” addressed issues affecting the sector’s future. Panelists answered questions that included:
- What is driving demand for logistics real estate?
- What opportunities and risks is the current cycle generating?
- How do changes in the logistics sector affect logistics facilities?
Panel speakers included:
- Ben Bannatyne, President, Prologis Europe
- Dirk Sosef, Vice President, Research & Strategy, Prologis Europe
- Alison Abbey, Senior Vice President, Eastdil Secured
- Dagmar Knopek, Chief Credit Officer, Aareal Bank AG
- Jeremy Plummer, EMEA Head of CBRE Global Investors & CEO of Global Investment Partners
- Olivier Téran, Chief Investment Officer, Allianz Real Estate
- Logan Smith, Head of Logistics, International Investment Group, BNP Paribas
The panel speakers (from the left): Dirk Sosef, Olivier Téran, Ben Bannatyne, Alison Abbey, Dagmar Knopek and Logan Smith
Participants agreed that capital in the sector is sufficient to fund required investment. They debated whether strong growth was attributable primarily to the e-commerce sector or not, with Ben Bannatyne citing a key statistic: Around 20 percent of leases signed by Prologis in the EU in 2017 were with e-commerce businesses.
To round out the discussion, panelists discussed supply chain restructuring, infrastructure, regulations and future trends. The speakers brought the forum to a close with a debate on technology innovations poised to impact the sector in future years, focusing on self-driving cars and trucks, electric vehicles, drones and multistory logistics facilities.
