The request from IT&C and BPO companies could tilt the balance between Orhideea-Center West and Barbu Văcărescu-Center North office fashion areas

To these will be added future projects too, such as the one in Bere Griviţa and those that will be carried aut on the land recently purchased by Skanska and the real estate division of Ikea and which will expand the horizon for the development of the area by 2018-2020.

Although the major deliveries in new and modern buildings announced for the Orhideea area will be made in 2017, the pre-contracts will be negotiated during this period, and the success of this area will take shape until the summer of 2016. A major role will play the IT&C and outsourcing companies, which is expected to take another 70,000 Romanian employees during the next five years.

During the last five years, the request from IT&C, Telecom and BPO companies has grown steadily, from 40,329 sqm which was the total in 2011, at more than 100,000 sqm per year, as it is constantly during the last four years.

„Grozăvești-Orhideea area is in the spotlight and will be the same during the next 9-12 months in direct competition with recently developed office areas in Bucharest, Barbu Văcărescu - Floreasca and Dimitrie Pompei, for earning the interest of tenants. We believe that this area has competitive advantages that will help it in this fight, of which the most important are: the proximity of Politehnică and Regie-Grozăveşti university campus, an important thing considering that more than 40% of the request for offices in 2014 and during the first 9 months of 2015 comes from companies with this profile, and proximity to subway and Drumul Taberei – Militari, some of the largest residential areas in Bucharest”, says Alexandru Petrescu, Managing Partner at ESOP Consulting / Corfac International.

Strong points of Orhideea- Center West area

1.            Politehnica and university campus, easy access to other faculties: under the conditions of growing competition in the labor market, it is especially important for IT&C companies to have in their neighborhood the greatest possible student base from which to recruit workforce

2.            more land available in the area, for future buildings, an area where a great player like Skanska, which could be successful with the first developments may decide to further develop this area and also to be followed by some other major developers

3.            during the period 2016-2019 it will have the greatest stock of new buildings, due to the high number of announced projects, efficient buildings, of some international developers - green buildings, quality finishes, modern architectural solutions etc.

4.            proximity of the large „bedroom” neighborhoods  Militari and Drumul Taberei, where the employees live

5.            Afi Mall Cotroceni in proximity, one of the larger and successfull malls in Bucharest  and Carrefour Orhideea

6.            Botanical Garden and Cişmigiu Park are close

7.            The Old Center is close

8.            Cotroceni residential area, for the expats

9.            Grozăveşti, Semanatoarea, Politenica subway stations

Strong points of Barbu Văcărescu – Center North area

1.            branding as high office area, it has a great popularity, due to the high standards at which it has been built during recent years

2.            currently it has the largest stock of new, and latest generation buildings, at very high standards of quality (offices mostly delivered during the period 2013-2015 or during delivery) that can be quickly available and were made by international developers that come with a guarantee of quality of the execution of works

3.            proximity of the luxury residential area, Pipera and Şoseaua Nordului, Primavarii, Dorobanti, Aviatorilor, Floreasca, where expats and managers of companies live, they being attracted to these areas by the international schools for children and other facilities developed over time

4.            proximity of the airport

5.            proximity of very good hotels and restaurants, for business partners, accommodation spaces and restaurants of four and five stars for foreign guests or other important business partners

6.            a green area nearby, Floreasca Park and proximity of the larger park in Bucharest, Herăstrău Park

7.            Promenada Mall – a new mall in the heart of the office developments

8.            A promenade area, an area for the employees to socialize

9.            Aviației, Dimitrie Pompei subway stations

Deliveries in Center-West area 

Orhideea Area 

Orhideea Towers -37,000 sq. m (2017)

The Bridge - 56,000 sq. m (2017)

Bere Griviţa - 31,000 sq. m (2018-2019)

Center-west extended area      

Afi, new phases - 33,000 sq. m (2016)

Sema New - 15,000 sq. m (2016)

The current rents for presentation, required by the owners of class A office buildings in these areas are 15 - 17.5 euro/sqm/sqm center north and 14.5 -17 euro/sqm/month in the center west area.

It is impossible to predict which way will tilt the interest balance of the tenants between Grozăvești-Orhideea and Barbu Văcărescu – Floreasca, but the time and main evaluation criteria will give the measure of success that each of the two areas will have in the future. The tenants of IT&C and BPO could have an important word to say during the next five years.

But on the long term the main criteria for evaluating the success that could be achieved by these areas will be:

1.            What surface is delivered annually in each area

2.            Which is the total stock of new office buildings

3.            Which is the vacancy rate 

4.            Which is the average level of rent

5.            In which areas it will be possible to be made faster and more profitable the exits by the developers?

(source: ESOP)