Thor Equities Welcomes WeWork in Mexico

By Gail Kalinoski

The Landmark Guadalajara

WeWork, the coworking and technology giant, continues to expand around the globe. Most recently, the company has become the anchor tenant of the Class A office building that is part of Thor Equities Group’s new 2.5 million-square-foot mixed-use development in Mexico.

The firm is leasing approximately five floors, or 91,600 square feet, in the 16-story, 300,000-square-foot office tower at The Landmark Guadalajara in Guadalajara, Mexico. The project, which just opened, also has 70 high-end retail stores and 150 luxury residences. Designed by Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos, the property is located in the Puerto de Hierro district, the most exclusive and prestigious neighborhood in Guadalajara.

“We are excited to welcome WeWork to The Landmark Guadalajara in Mexico,” Joseph Sitt, chairman of Thor Equities Group, said in a prepared statement. “As the area continues to develop into the region’s most important economic zone, companies are increasingly looking to operate their businesses in the city.”

The shopping area is also open and features international retail tenants like Max Mara, Hugo by Hugo Boss, West Elm, Design Within Reach and Under Armour.

Thor Equities Group comprises Mexico City-based Thor Urbana, Thor Equities Europe and Thor Equities North America. The company has started four new projects in Mexico totaling about 7 million square feet in October and November. In 2012, Thor Urbana Capital launched a major investment project, estimated at about $500 million, across Mexico to take advantage of a real estate boom. The first project that year was a high-end retail development spread over nearly a full block along Quinta Avenue, a popular shopping boulevard in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

In the U.S., one of Thor Equities’ latest acquisition was the Norwood Medical Center, also known as Guild Medical Center in Norwood, Mass., for $23.5 million from Grander Capital Partners. The purchase of the 92,000-square-foot medical facility in September marked the company’s first acquisition in the Greater Boston area.

WeWork’s global growth

For WeWork, the Mexico lease marks another international milestone for the rapidly growing coworking company. Earlier in November, Kennedy Wilson, a global real estate investment and asset manager, signed WeWork to a long-term lease at an eight-story building at Friars Bridge Court in London’s Southbank market. The company is expected to take occupancy of the building at 41-45 Blackfriars Road in 2021, after it has been completely renovated. Friars Bridge Court will be WeWork’s 41^st location in London. The company is already the largest corporate occupier in the city’s central area. Earlier this year in the U.S., WeWork leased the entire 252,000-square-foot office tower at 430 California St. in San Francisco, which is co-owned by Kennedy Wilson and Takenaka Corp. More recently, it has been leasing major blocks of space in Manhattan, including taking the entire office portion of 149 Madison Ave. at the 12-story building owned by Columbia Property Trust in October. It was the third lease between WeWork and Columbia in Manhattan, where the flexible office space provider also has new leases at 609 Fifth Ave. and 880 Third Ave.

WeWork’s growth has been so intense lately that a case study by a leading European credit rating agency—Scope Ratings—and its sister company Scope Risk Solutions questioned whether it was too fast and too much of a risk for the commercial property investors who may consider leasing to it. The company has grown from 7,000 members in 2014 to more than 250,000 now, with about 460 prime locations offering more than 14 million square feet of office space around the world.

Image courtesy of Thor Equities Group