One-on-One
BY LYNN NOVELLI
Coull
Running
Chief Executive Ian Coull explains how SEGRO has
managed to stay on track in the global recession
When asked about the pronuncia- tion of his last name, SEGRO plc (LSE:SEGRO) Chief Execu- tive Ian Coull says simply, “Coull. As in the oppo- site of warm.” That could also
be used to describe the market his company has been facing. The last two years
have been among the most challenging
his company has ever faced, according
to Coull.
Based in the United Kingdom,
SEGRO focuses on industrial flex space
spread across 10 European countries.
The company’s customer base includes
1,900 firms, ranging from small data
centers to global corporations.
As 2010 begins to draw to a close,
Coull says he sees some indicators that
the worst is over, with business conditions in the industrial sector poised for a
turnaround.
REIT magazine recently spoke with
Coull to get his take on market climate
going forward and the state of the industrial market heading into 2011.
CLOSE UP
Ian Coull: I’m a “half-full” kind of guy, but in early May I
was very downcast about business conditions. There was an
election coming up in the U.K., it looked as though Greece
was going to default, which would have had an impact across
the Euro zone, and the BP oil well was
gushing. Now, many of these situations
have improved or gone away, and business
sentiment measures are more positive.
REIT: After two years of higher vacancies, pressures on rents and overall depressed business conditions, is the European industrial sector through the worst
of the recession?
FULL NAME: Ian Coull
AGE: 60
EDUCATION: Fellow of the Royal
Institution of Chartered Surveyors
FAMILY: Wife ( Linda), three
children ( Linzi, Morna and Ross), 3
grandchildren
HOBBIES: Sport — especially rugby
(now as a spectator) and golf
CURRENTLY READING: The
Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson
FAVORITE MOVIE: “The Godfather”
FAVORITE VACATION SPOT: Chile
COMMUNITY/PROFESSIONAL
AC TIVI TIES: Board Member of
the European Public Real Estate
Association (EPRA), Chair of
the British Property Federation
(BPF) REITs Task Force, past
President of BPF (2005-2006),
member of the London Regional
Board of the Royal and Sun Alliance,
Fellow of the Royal Institution of
Chartered Surveyors, Fellow of the
Royal Society of Arts.
REI T: As far as recovery, do you see differences among the different segments
SEGRO does business in?
Coull: Our assets are located in suburban areas outside of major European
cities and the southeast U.K., and
properties in those areas in general have
withstood the recession better than in
the cities.
Flex space is our core business and
represents the greatest part of our portfolio. We lease between 1,000 and 50,000
square feet for businesses such as data
ADRIAN WEINBRECHT/AURORA SELECT
