The first ever SIOR European Conference was held in London on June 23-24 at London Marriott Hotel, Grosvenor Square. The conference was held jointly with the Industrial Asset Management Council’s (IAMC) Professional Forum to create an exciting collaboration between both events. Coincidentally, it was also the day on which the referendum for the Brexit was held. What an amazing time to be in Europe!
With so much to highlight from the event, I wanted to share four takeaways that you may have missed if you sadly weren’t able to attend.
- Impressive Attendance. Nearly 350 people from 20 different countries attended the conference. They included 179 SIORs, 71 SIOR guests, and 90 IAMCs. For a first-time event requiring trans-Atlantic travel, this is extraordinary. The opportunities to network were seen everywhere you looked.
- Stand-Out Programming. The index of speakers, panels, and tours for this conference was impressive. The first day of the conference was a joint day with IAMC. Kevin Dollhopf, head of real estate for Hanes and former Chair of IAMC, said that he could not have been more pleased. Martin Wolf, Chief Economist and Commentator for the Financial Times, was certain that low interest rates would remain with us for the next five years, but pessimistic about the economic and political effects of the Brexit. A panel of three executives from money management firms were somber on Friday morning, as a result of the vote to leave. Other speakers included Sir Stuart Lipton, a prominent UK developer. The list of speakers and panelists was impressive and included SIOR's Geoff Kasselman, Panattoni's Robert Dobrzycki, Prologis' Joseph Ghazal, and many others.
- Publicity. Coverage of the event was widespread and included articles in the following publications: PropertyWeek, WSJ, MIPIM, and Building (UK) to name a few. Coverage of SIOR’s opinions on Brexit received global attention.
- Recruiting. A senior investment manager and panel speaker on Friday morning said that he was extraordinarily impressed with SIOR and wanted to join. He is now applying for associate membership. A Corporate Solutions specialist with a global brokerage firm is also applying for membership.
“The panels, speakers and events were off the charts. The fact that we had speakers and panelists like Martin Wolf, Chief Economics Commentator for Financial Times, Alistar Dixon, Chairman of Azimuth Global Partners, Jonathan Baines, CORFAC Farebrother and Philip LaPierre, Head of Investment Management for Europe Union Investment on the days of BREXIT will amaze me for years!” – Frank Hird, SIOR.
SIOR events are not-to-be missed, as evident from the positive feedback we received from the conference. We look forward to seeing you in New York City for our Fall World Conference and to continue our 75th Anniversary celebration!