Cushman & Wakefield: It's a good moment for us to boost market share

Britain’s Cushman & Wakefield consultancy, which entered the Romanian market by acquiring Activ Consulting, believes this is a good moment for the company to expand its activities and gain a market share, as the real estate crisis has tightened competition. The British company is going to develop the services that can bring added value to its domestic subsidiary, namely retail, asset management and assessment, and will introduce some new ones, such as project management. In crisis conditions, when deals subside, building management services are the most productive, according to the company’s representatives. “(…) At this moment, we’re well capitalised, but we must pay attention to the decisions we’ll make in the following period,” Paul Bacon, CEO for Europe, the Middle East and Africa of Cushman & Wakefield, told ZF. The firm’s domestic office has budgeted 80% higher turnover, to around 8m euros. Real estate turmoil will still be felt next year, but Romania will be less harmed by the shortage of offices, shopping centres and housing space. “There will be a small number of real estate deals next year, as well, with 2009 expected to be as difficult as 2008 and deals will rebound as late as 2010 (…),” added Bacon.