Qatar-owned Shard’s 26-floor office complex is now fully let, home to 31 businesses across a wide range of sectors including energy, retail, manufacturing, technology, finance, education, healthcare and professional services.
James Sellar, who has taken over the running of the family’s development company Sellar Property Group after the death in February of his father, Shard developer Irvine Sellar, said this was a moment to reflect on the success of the enterprise.
“Together with the State of Qatar we have achieved what we set out to deliver: a vibrant and dynamic building that has been both a catalyst and a magnet for further investment in this part of Southwark. The Shard has become a global landmark that, against all odds, is recognised as a blueprint for the creation of a European vertical city,” he said.
His view is shared by the leader of Southwark Council, Councillor Peter John, who said, “The Shard has transformed London Bridge, brought new jobs and opportunities and symbolises the ambition of Southwark where the sky really is the limit.
New tenant, CoStar, is currently in the process of relocating its European headquarters to The Shard where it will occupy 15,912 sq ft on the 26th floor.
CoStar is a leading provider of commercial real estate information, analytics and online marketplaces. Over 400,000 UK commercial property buildings are tracked in CoStar’s database where every change in their status is recorded – from space becoming available to it being let or sold, tenants moving in, leases expiring, or the building being demolished for example.
Andrew Florance, founder and chief executive officer, CoStar Group, said, “The relocation of our European headquarters to The Shard reflects the importance we place on great property and we expect it will help us to provide an even more comprehensive service for our customers.”
Also relocating to The Shard is the leading facilities management company, Mitie, which will make the move in Q1 2018 to its 29,824 sq ft premises on level 12. As the 31st business to move to The Shard, it will bring 250 employees from three separate locations to its new headquarters under one roof. 
Knight Frank and JLL are the leasing agents on The Shard on behalf of asset manager REM, which represents the Qatari-backed owners of the London Bridge Quarter.
Dan Gaunt, head of city leasing, Knight Frank, said, “The businesses based in The Shard have benefited from the vertical city beyond simply having an inspiring, high quality space for their employees. This is reflected in the significant number of occupiers expanding throughout the leasing programme which is indicative of the role a building can play in facilitating a vibrant business community.”
In September, the independent infrastructure and private equity investment manager, Foresight Group, increased its office space by 36%, leasing a further 10,143 sq ft on level 18. 
Foresight was one of the first office occupiers to move into The Shard in May 2014, when it relocated its headquarters from Sevenoaks in Kent to a purpose-built suite that occupied half of level 17 (9,500 sq ft). 
Group chairman Bernard Fairman coined the phrase “The Shard Effect” to explain the company’s rapid growth following its move to the building. The company doubled in size in just two years and moved to occupy the whole of level 23 (17,710 sq ft) in October 2015.
A number of other occupiers have undergone similar expansions, including Duff & Phelps and MATCHESFASHION.COM.
Last month, Warwick Business School announced it was expanding its WBS London base at The Shard by taking additional space on the 13th floor.
WBS opened its operations in London in 2015 when it took over half of the 17th floor at The Shard from where it has run its Executive MBA and Doctor of Business Administration course for executives as well as the MSc Central Banking & Financial Regulation also taught exclusively for Bank of England staff and graduates.
Moving into the 13th floor will see WBS expand its footprint at The Shard by 50%.


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