Cushman & Wakefield to set up office

REALTY RISES IN AHMEDABAD

New York-based global real estate consultancy firm Cushman & Wakefield has decided to set up its shop in Ahmedabad.

"We will set up our Gujarat operations in Ahmedabad in a month or two," said Sanjay Dutt, joint managing director of Cushman & Wakefield India Pvt Ltd.

Though global firms like Knightfrank India, CB Richard Ellis and Jones Lang Lasalle Meghraj have their operations in the state, it is for the first time that an office will be set up here.

Earlier Knightfrank, which was surveying the city, decided to take time to set up its shop as it was waiting for the market to mature, a top company official had earlier said.

The company is looking for office space at CG Road and Ashram Road and will offer several real estate services including feasibility study, project management and brokerage activity. Its clientele list in Gujarat includes the Kohler group. The company is also planning to cater to IT, ITeS and the KPO sector, which have remained untapped, according to Dutt.

There is a demand for at least half-a-million sft of IT space in the next two years and about 3 million sft will be added in the state 2009 onwards, according to C&W estimates.

There is a lot of commitment from the government in strengthening the state infrastructure and the cost of living is low here as compared with other major cities and this is a good sign for investment, Dutt added.