Have we hit ‘peak logistics’?

Logistics is in the spotlight for sure. But have we hit peak logistics? If even my mother-in-law is praising a big box in Buckingham for the efficiency of her supermarket home delivery, is there any road left for logistics developers to travel? Yes is my answer. Here’s why.

The logistics industry is one of the most creative and adaptable I know within real estate development. It’s forensic at assessing form and function and produces ruthlessly pragmatic buildings that are operationally optimised. No square foot is wasted and no opportunity is overlooked. These buildings flex to market needs and occupier requirements meaning they are the proper definition of ‘elastic buildings’. They remain relevant when other real estate assets risk going obsolete (a modern warehouse building is fundamentally more flexible than an office block tower).

Not only are these buildings working hard, they’re also looking good. Design has come a long way since the early forerunners of the 1990s. Of course, you can’t get away from the fact that a one million sq ft building is a one million sq ft building but architecture, materials, colour palettes and ‘place’ are unrecognisable. Modern logistics parks have aesthetics and amenity. They would put some housing developments I’ve seen to shame.

Did somebody mention sustainability? These buildings typically have outstanding energy and environmental credentials. They are impressive on their own but, on my theme of innovation, the best new buildings are now being sited by smart-thinking developers on or alongside power generation, creating a virtuous circle of renewable and reliable energy to fuel the building and the activities that take place within it.

I’ve worked in industrial and logistics development for more than 20 years, from DIRFT and the ‘Golden Triangle’ to Thurrock and the River Thames. I never cease to be impressed by the mindset of the teams that are bringing these projects to fruition and to the market.

No surprise, therefore, that I’m a big advocate for the value of logistics and the logistics sector, and of the things it delivers in all senses of the word: from ‘the goods’ people want to social value.

If the stock market and the business page editors are giving logistics a bit more love, I’m all for it. The sector has very much been under-loved and overlooked for too long.

What do I hope happens next?

The clue’s in what I’ve already said. That far from hitting ‘peak logistics’ or ‘shed-mageddon’ we continue to see the sector do what it does best – adapt, evolve, innovate and satisfy the needs of the people who use it. And frankly that’s all of us because of structural shifts in the retail market and what we all do now – ‘click and expect’, knowing if not caring that a shed will be there to deliver.

But it’s not all about the growth of e-commerce. Logistics is also the ‘glue’ that’s essential for supporting manufacturing and other industries too. Greater political recognition of this and the logistics sector’s national strategic importance is vital.

So this one’s for the logistics developers. We loved you in the old times, we’re alongside you now in this spotlight and the late summer sun, and we’ll be with you in the future.

A dog is for life, not just for Christmas, as someone once wrote. Likewise a shed is for your life and needs*, working 24/7 to fuel our economy and our society.

Take a bow sheds and shed developers. You’ve earned it.

*Every home in the UK creates a requirement for approximately 110 sq ft of logistics space, in case you wanted to know!