Panattoni enters the French market

Panattoni expands its foothold in Europe. Following its successful ventures in Germany, the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Panattoni has decided to expand into another market. Its latest destination is France – a dynamic and strategic market for investors and one where the end-customer demand is high. In the first half of 2021, take-up in French logistics real estate reached 1.7 million sqm*. Salvi Cals has been appointed Managing Director of the French branch.  “France represents an essential market for our customers. Located in the heart of Western Europe, it is the gateway to many of the European countries in which we are already present as well as markets that we wish to expand into. The services offered by its port, airport and road infrastructure are a key differentiator for the country,”explains Robert Dobrzycki, the Chief Executive Officer of Panattoni Europe.

“Our customers operate in many European markets. In each of these, we want to offer them the best possible conditions to work in, by supplying them with first-class logistics platforms and production space,” insists Robert Dobrzycki. The strength and potential of the French market are the main reasons for this expansion: "As in other European countries, the global pandemic had no negative impact on warehouse demand. 3PL and retailer resilience, new consumer trends, in particular the rapid growth of e-commerce, have given us the positive signals we need to start building an experienced team of professionals in France right now,” he adds.

The French arm of Panattoni will be led by Salvi Cals, who has been appointed Managing Director. “Panattoni provides me with the opportunity to offer our customers and partners a wide range of services. The strength of Panattoni’s global platform enables the French team to move quickly and develop a diversity of assets, of all sizes and in all French regions where the supply can be limited,” explains Salvi Cals, Panattoni’s Managing Director for France.

Salvi Cals has the advantage of 15 years’ experience in commercial real estate in France, including more than 10 years at Prologis, where he oversaw its investment services team in Southern Europe from 2010 to 2014. Salvi then joined the capital deployment team in charge of the Paris and Le Havre markets until 2020, when he was promoted to Head of Capital Deployment for France. During his tenure, Salvi managed 330,000 sqm of developments, including speculative and built-to-suit projects, acquired 60,000 sqm of urban logistics assets in Paris, and secured 1 million sqm of new development sites.

*Source: CBRE - France Logistics MarketView Q2 2021