Savills Investment Management (Savills IM), an international commercial real estate investment manager, has signed a lease extension agreement for the Gdański Business Center office complex in Warsaw with KMD Poland. The Danish technology company has occupied three floors of Building A since 2015 with a total office space of 6,200 m2.
KMD, which is part of NEC Corporation, develops IT systems and has provided digital solutions to the Danish economy and public administration for almost 50 years. The company also designs solutions for the private sector in the areas of banking and private social security, health and pension insurance. Among other things, KMD offers outsourcing, application management, cloud computing, and dedicated systems for payment and administration services. KMD’s branch in Poland is located at Gdański Business Center in Warsaw and has employed over 550 experts over the last six years.
Julia Racewicz, Senior Asset Manager at Savills Investment Management, said:
“We are extremely pleased that KMD has once again chosen Gdański Business Center for its headquarters and thus extended its existing lease agreement for over 6,000 m2. Today, when working models are changing, this decision takes on even greater significance. We are pleased to see demand for modern, high-end office space, as evidenced by this transaction with KMD at the Gdański Business Center complex.”
Adam Wiercioch, Vice President of KMD Poland, commented:
“The extension of the lease agreement until 2028 is primarily a confirmation of KMD’s long-term investment in the Polish market to date and an assurance of the company’s further development. We made the decision to stay at our current location based on the positive feedback from our employees and associates and after comparing alternative locations. What matters the most to us is comfortable working conditions for our teams, and this is what the office at GBC provides us. It is not only a place to work, but above all a space for meetings, relaxation and inspiration.
“Taking advantage of the extension of the lease agreement, we are also modernizing and refreshing the entire office space to better meet the needs and expectations of our teams, which have recently changed significantly. We want to combine new trends resulting from remote working with the possibilities offered by the existing location of the highest standard available on the market. That’s why we’re modernizing current spaces and creating new ones: from open areas for large technology conferences, and creative team rooms, to spaces for individual work. We hope that by equipping these various types of spaces with modern tools we will contribute to the emergence of even better IT solutions and ensure efficiency and comfort of work for our employees.
“In addition, work-life balance is in our DNA, which is why we don’t forget to upgrade our break-out zones, coffee points, plenty of green areas and bike locker rooms. This helps build personal relations between employees and facilitates team integration, which is an important part of our culture.”
The tenant was represented in the negotiation process by consultancy CBRE.
Paweł Dobrowolski, Office Space Department Director at CBRE, added:
“For our client KMD Poland, the office is an essential part of its organizational identity. In my opinion, staying at the GBC building is a very good decision. Proper organization and use of office space supports business development, integration between people, creativity and teamwork.”
Gdański Business Center is a modern complex consisting of four class A office buildings situated in the center of Warsaw. The investment was completed in 2014 (phase 1) and 2016 (phase 2). Apart from the office space, the complex also features restaurants, a café, a beauty salon, a kindergarten, a medical centre, the Zdrofit fitness club and a public courtyard with greenery and street furniture elements. Tenants of the complex can also use terraces situated at higher storeys of the buildings. Gdański Business Center offers 1,379 underground and 76 on-grade parking spots and biking infrastructure, with 416 bicycle racks, changing rooms and showers. The tenants of the complex include Provident Polska, KPMG, Aviva, Philip Morris, Euronet, KMD, Uber, Nielsen, Dell.
The complex is located next to the Dworzec Gdański M1 metro line and next to the Warszawa Dworzec Gdański railway station. There are also many bus and tram stops as well as city bike rental points near the investment, which guarantees excellent transport options to other districts of Warsaw. The proximity of the Gdański Bridge also facilitates access to the right bank of Warsaw. There are numerous amenities in the vicinity of the complex, e.g. the Westfield Arkadia shopping mall.
The investment, which was awarded the BREEAM Excellent certificate, was purchased by Savills IM on behalf of a global pension fund.