Business News
Mayor backs London's first International Convention Centre - ExCeL
Currently undergoing a £165 million development, marking its new world class status endorsed by the Mayor of London Boris Johnson, Visit London and the Greater London Authority; London Thames Gateway's ExCeL conference centre has been renamed ‘ICC London ExCeL'.
The first purpose built large scale convention venue in London, ICC London ExCeL will open in May 2010 and has a projected economic benefit of £1.6 billion by the end of 2011. The launch coincided with a new commitment from the city to attract more large scale conferences and events.
Mayor of London, Boris Johnson said: "London's fighting back - we want to attract more international events and overseas companies to the capital, building on the seven million business travellers that come each year.
"This £165m investment in the capital's first International Convention Centre at ExCeL London underlines our commitment to offer top quality facilities for business. Add to that a superb range of hotels, a comprehensive transport network and an unrivalled range of attractions for business travellers, London is the place to be if you want to create a successful event."
ICC London ExCeL also represents the first Olympic venue to be completed, some two years ahead of the Olympics and completely privately funded.
Report confirms GtL mantra: "London's moving east"
‘Shaping the Future of East London', a new research report from commercial estate agent CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) has concluded that east London is becoming a business hotspot, with 34.4 million sq ft of commercial space in the pipeline.
Matthew Black, Head of CBRE's east London team said: "The momentum generated by the Olympic Games cannot be overstated. The Games will continue to fundamentally change our perception of East London and act as a catalyst for change.
And while Stratford is perceived as the prime beneficiary, other strategic areas such as the Royal Docks, Canning Town and the Greenwich Peninsula have pivotal roles in the evolution of east London.
Matthew Black continued: "Central to the success of east London as both a commercial and residential destination, will be improved transport links and infrastructure, increasing access for residents, employees and visitors alike. London underground extensions and the planned Crossrail network will open up the east-west London link, which will be of particular benefit to cross-London business and the Royal Docks development".
Download the report here.
London's Tops
Our capital city has again been ranked the best business city in Europe in the Cushman & Wakefield European Cities Monitor, a position it has held every year since the survey started in 1990. Paris and Frankfurt are again ranked second and third. London is ranked the number one city in half of the 12 major rankings including access to markets, availability of qualified staff and international and internal transport links.
James Young, City of London office head, Cushman & Wakefield, said: "Since the collapse of Lehman Brothers just over a year ago, London has been through a pretty turbulent time. This year's survey, however, is evidence that it has not lost its position as Europe's and probably the world's leading business and financial centre. Major corporates clearly still recognise that its critical mass of talent, facilities and infrastructure combine to deliver a compelling location for business. Although office space remains relatively more expensive than other European capitals, costs have come down considerably this year and occupiers looking at locating here will find historically low rents which are likely to remain competitive until well in to 2010 at least. As the host for the 2012 Olympic Games it will also benefit from one of the largest domestic investments in infrastructure ever seen."
The European Cities Monitor is based on interviews with senior managers and board directors in charge of location for 500 of Europe's largest companies. From this research it produces an overall ranking of which European city is considered by the business community to be ‘best for business' and the ‘best city in which to locate a business today'. In addition to the overall ranking, 34 cities are judged against a number of criteria such as quality of life, telecommunications, access to markets, availability and quality of staff, cost of office space and transport links.
European Cities Monitor also asked companies which were the key factors when deciding where to relocate their business. Easy access to markets, customers or clients came ahead of the availability of qualified staff as the single most important factor with telecommunications then ahead of national and international transport links.
Those surveyed also said that fears over the performance of the European economy followed by the availability of corporate finance were the two most important factors most likely to impact their business over the next ten years.
The full report is available to download from Cushman & Wakefield here