OXFORD’S TOWERS STANDING TALL
Thriving real estate leader attracting a diverse group of businesses to city’s core
Continued economic uncertainty in Calgary has been especially tough on owners of downtown office space. Downsizing by some companies into smaller spaces, plus the movement of others to suburbia, has meant vacancy rates today sit at nearly 26 per cent.
With five significant downtown properties in its Calgary portfolio of 4.5 million square feet that have an impressive occupancy rate of 92 per cent, Oxford Properties Group has implemented a unique and deliberate approach to attracting a diverse group of businesses to the city’s core.
Bow Valley Square, Millennium Tower, Devon Tower, Centennial Place and Eau Claire Tower each offer world-class customer service and a range of amenities that have made it possible for the real estate leader to add new clients while retaining a large number of loyal occupants.
Offering businesses of all sizes a variety of customizable leasing options makes it possible for international corporations and local startups alike to thrive sideby-side in the heart of the city. A number of organizations beyond Calgary’s energy sector — including tech companies, legal and financial services, government groups and more — are currently housed in Oxford’s towers.
The resounding success of Oxworx, a flexible office solution providing options for small and growing businesses piloted by Oxford in Bow Valley Square in 2018, continues to draw occupants, and the company has launched a second Oxworx location in Millennium Tower.
Global software development company ESQ has announced that its Canadian support and software development branch, Cloudex, will open a Calgary office in Oxworx in Bow Valley Square. And Helcim, a company launched in 2006 to provide credit card processing and merchant account services to small businesses, has established its new 20,000-square-foot head office in Millennium Tower.
Helcim has expanded its headquarters in Calgary because of the affordable yet high standard of living the city offers to its team, and the multiple post-secondaries from which it can recruit its future employees.
Rob Park, Helcim COO, says having decided it was important for the company to be part of the city’s downtown hub, it was an easy next step to choose Millennium
Tower, spurred on by the need for a flexible open concept in a well-connected, amenity-rich office space that could also accommodate its plans for growth.
“Helcim has big things to achieve and lots of work to do, and we wanted to bring our growing team into an energetic, vibrant environment that would foster their creativity and enhance the time they spend at work,” says Park. “We also felt that having our headquarters in the city’s core would allow our staff to enjoy and support the local businesses, restaurants and culture for which the city is known.”
David Rutledge, vice-president of real estate management west at Oxford Properties, says, “Having made a strategic shift to not only providing our customers with tailored office space, but also in creating an environment of hospitality, community connection and innovation, we continue to see a strong return on investment when it comes to businesses choosing to set up shop in our downtown properties.”
With a growing number of companies such as Helcim and ESQ embracing a new era in Calgary’s inner city, Rutledge says Oxford is well-equipped to cater to modern-day needs of any and all organizations and remains committed to investing in Calgary’s future, as business innovation driven by its occupants continues to breathe new life into what is once again a bustling, thriving city centre. Notes:
Congratulations to Karen Sherbut, president and co-founder of Safe Haven Foundation, who has been recognized as one of 10 honourees for the 2020 L’oréal Paris Women of Worth program. Sherbut has done an excellent job for the past 24 years running the foundation that helps change the lives of homeless and at-risk girls in Calgary. The honour comes with a grant of $10,000 from L’oréal Paris, and if she is chosen as the national nominee the foundation will receive an additional $10,000. Safe Haven is launching a capital campaign this year to raise $1.5 million to purchase and renovate a three-storey, ninesuite apartment building; the grant is a great kick-start.
We ... see a strong return on investment when it comes to businesses choosing to set up shop in our downtown properties.