John Cushman III, Andrew McDonald, Phil Brodkin and Cody Cannon
John Cushman III, Andrew McDonald, Phil Brodkin and Cody Cannon
Chairman of global transactions; CEO for the Americas; managing principal of Los Angeles; managing principal of Orange County and the Inland Empire at Cushman & Wakefield
While a market the size of Los Angeles has always been a focus for Cushman & Wakefield, serving as the home base for some of its top executives, the global brokerage spent the last year beefing up its executive and rank-and-file talent in the region.
In August, two new executives came in to oversee the greater Los Angeles market: Phil Brodkin as managing principal of Los Angeles, and Cody Cannon as managing principal of Orange County and the Inland Empire.
And it’s a good thing too. With Los Angeles ports the bottleneck point for national supply chain issues, and the stratospheric industrial market in the Inland Empire, along with a rebounding of business in core Los Angeles, there’s a lot to manage.
“Orange County is leading the country in [industrial rental increases],” Cannon said. “Landlords don’t want to pre-lease space, even on the pre-development side because 30, 60, 90 days from now the current asking rents could increase significantly.”
Cushman & Wakefield has been busy not only on the industrial front, but the last two quarters have seen an uptick in deals across the board.
In June, the firm brokered the sale of The Switchyard, a creative office complex in L.A.’s Arts District, for $80 million. In September, Cushman & Wakefield represented the buyer in a deal to purchase an Amazon Fresh store in L.A.’s Westside for $35 million. On the financing front, it arranged a $231 million condo inventory loan from on an ultra-luxury West Hollywood property.
Even leasing is back.
“Despite some concerns in office, we’ve been able to participate in renewals and expansions,” Cannon said. That’s along with some new deals, such as a 31,000-square-foot lease in Downtown for fashion designer Johnny Was, which will serve as the designer’s showroom and offices.
There’s no denying that some sectors of the market are still lagging, but the sense of momentum is growing headed into 2022.
“Despite the real and perceived challenges, we’re seeing a lot of velocity,” Cannon said. — C.G.
