Property firm on move to Whitefriars
» PROPERTY company Countrywide has announced plans to move into a new office building in Bristol.
The firm has leased 3,077 sq ft at Whitefriars in the city centre, near Cabot Circus shopping centre.
Commercial property consultancy Hartnell Taylor Cook agreed the deal on behalf of landlord Topland and alongside joint agents JLL and Burston Cook.
It is the latest letting in the recently refurbished Whitefriars building, which has seen a string of deals in recent months.
The 138,000 sq ft office block has an on-site gym, a cafe, conference rooms, electric vehicle charging points and cycle storage.
Lizzie Boswell, senior surveyor at Hartnell Taylor Cook, said: “It’s fantastic to see such a well-known name like Countrywide entering the building after several other businesses have signed leases in recent months.
“Just as Whitefriars is buzzing with new occupiers moving in, so is the broader Bristol office market with Q4 2021 seeing the secondhighest take-up level that the city centre has seen since 2016.”
Ms Boswell said the Bristol office market was “really competitive” as businesses searched for space post-pandemic.
Steve Pope, group director of property and asset management at Topland, added: “We have seen a sustained rate of lettings at Whitefriars in recent months thanks to the competitive market pricing and available amenities attracting a variety of tenants.
“In the year ahead, as more businesses begin to crystalize their ‘return to work’ strategies, we expect the building to remain one of incoming occupiers’ top choices in the city.
“Bristol is booming post-pandemic and we are delighted to be a part of it.”