Last year KPMG revealed its top 10 Technology Innovation Hubs.
London came fifth. Cities in the US, Asia & India featured strongly.
Not one mainland European city made the list.
At the same time, conventional wisdom was telling us that cities were in danger because no-one in their right mind would ever go to an office again especially as Zoom, etc. was so wonderful. Stories about a mass exodus from London were rampant…
I did suggest that this view was rather short-sighted because if remote working was such a marvel, why on earth do most of the major tech companies have vast HQ’s/campuses and why do smaller firms cluster in the same areas?
Of course, the “exodus” was short-lived and last week Google announced that in addition to the new, gargantuan HQ that it has built in King’s Cross, it would be acquiring its current offices in Central St Giles.
The Times reports that, “The giant American technology group will have the capacity to house thousands more staff in Britain after its latest investment. It said that its purchase for about £730 million of the Central Saint Giles development in the West End, where Google has been a tenant for a decade, demonstrated the company’s “continued commitment” to Britain.”
Ronan Harris, MD of Google U.K. and Ireland, said, “Our investment in this striking Renzo Piano-designed development represents our continued confidence in the office as a place for in-person collaboration and connection”.
London and other major cities are magnets for money and human capital. Successful & growing businesses need both and the good news is there is a vast amount of money sitting on the sidelines, i.e. both in business and personal bank accounts. As Bain & Co predicted, we are in a “World awash in money”, which is why London’s property market will see significant price rises in this and the following few years.
Sadly, the majority will remain sitting on the sidelines while they wait for whatever catastrophe the press has predicted to unfold. They will think that they are being contrarian but, in reality, they will just be following the herd.
The odds are heavily stacked in favour of significant price rises in London over the next few years. Those who acquire property sooner rather than later and remain selective will be the big winners.
As ever, the choice is yours.
