Leasing activity remains active, yet net absorption is subdued. So what are occupiers thinking and doing?
While leasing volumes remain elevated, occupier expansion has slowed as businesses focus on optimisation, consolidation and operational performance rather than pure footprint growth.
At the same time, the recent supply wave has delivered a greater pool of modern, higher-capability facilities, enabling occupiers to reassess their networks, improve productivity and upgrade into buildings better aligned with their long-term operating requirements.
As a result, demand is becoming more selective, relocation decisions are being judged on payback and cost control, and the performance gap between prime and secondary facilities is widening.
The Occupier Reset examines the behavioural shifts redefining industrial demand and what they mean for occupiers, landlords, developers and investors in 2027 and beyond.
Key insights include:
- Why efficiency is replacing expansion as the primary driver of leasing decisions.
- How consolidation is reshaping warehouse networks and facility requirements.
- Why occupiers continue to favour prime facilities despite greater availability of secondary-grade stock.
- How relocation decisions are increasingly being assessed through payback, productivity gains and maintaining the cost base.
- The role of consumer spending, data centres and AI in shaping future warehouse demand.
- Where vacancy, rents and occupier demand are expected to move through 2027, and the key risks that could delay recovery.
Drawing on Cushman & Wakefield's national market intelligence, occupier discussions and forecasting framework, the report provides practical insights for occupiers, investors, developers and landlords navigating the next phase of the industrial cycle.
