Avison Young opens new office in Hamburg, Germany

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Avison Young Commercial Real Estate (BC)

Jun 16, 2015, 08:00 ET

Fast-growing Canadian commercial real estate services firm opens fourth office in Germany; Thomas Loeffler becomes Managing Director

TORONTO, June 16, 2015 /CNW/ - Mark E. Rose, Chair and CEO of Avison Young, the world's fastest-growing commercial real estate services firm, announced today that the company has opened a new office in Hamburg, Germany.

The new Hamburg office represents Avison Young's fourth office in Germany, sixth office in Europe, and an additional step in the company's ongoing aggressive global growth and expansion strategy.

Over the past six years, Avison Young has grown from 11 to, now, 67 offices in 59 markets and from 300 to more than 1,900 real estate professionals across Canada, the U.S. and in Europe.

The Hamburg opening follows the launch of Avison Young's German operations in Frankfurt on December 1, 2014, new Munich office on January 21, 2015, and new Duesseldorf office on March 19, 2015.

Effective immediately, Thomas Loeffler becomes a Managing Director of Avison Young Germany GmbH. Loeffler will head up the company's Hamburg operations and focus on implementing the firm's growth strategy in the region through recruitment and acquisition. He will work closely on growing the firm's operations throughout the country with fellow Managing Directors Udo Stoeckl (Frankfurt), Markus Bruckner (Munich), Stephan Heinen (Duesseldorf) and Frank Loeblein (head of German retail real estate investment).

In addition, Aram Savci joins Avison Young in Hamburg as a consultant specializing in office leasing. Both Loeffler and Savci join Avison Young after serving as a branch manager and leasing agent, respectively, with DTZ in Hamburg.

"The opening of the Hamburg office demonstrates that our German expansion program continues to accelerate and gain strength as we steadily explore new markets in the European core," comments Rose. "As we actively continue to pursue more expansion opportunities within Germany, the new Hamburg office will complement our rapidly growing Frankfurt, Munich and Duesseldorf operations, creating more growth opportunities for our clients and our company throughout Europe, Canada and the U.S."

Rose continues: "We have now opened four offices in Germany in the past seven months and couldn't be more pleased to have Thomas leading the way in our Hamburg office. Together with Munich, Hamburg is one of the large growth regions in Germany and one of the most robust real estate markets in the country. Due to its long trading history, Hamburg's commercial real estate sector is independent of other German regions and stable. But before entering any market, a full-service company like ours must have proven leaders and local market experts in place, and we have a very accomplished team with Thomas and Aram. We're thrilled that they have joined our firm to continue our expansion program in Germany."

Loeffler brings to Avison Young 20 years of commercial real estate experience in Hamburg. Before joining DTZ, he was a top producer for Grossman and Berger GmbH in Hamburg (2004-2013), general manager with CBRE in Hamburg (2000-2004), and a property agent for Grossman and Berger (1995-2000) in Hamburg. During his career, he has developed long-standing relationships with key players in the local market.

"We are very happy to have Thomas and Aram on board in our Hamburg office," states Stoeckl. "Thomas is highly regarded in the commercial real estate industry and brings along a tremendous track record, which will be of great help as we grow our business locally, nationally and internationally. His leadership skills and established network within the industry are key to helping us grow our Avison Young platform in a market where it has always been a challenge to establish a new brand. Aram is also a great addition to our team in Hamburg. He and Thomas have already worked very well together at their previous firm, and we are very confident in the team's ability to expand operations and serve our clients."

Avison Young launched its European presence in April 2014 when the firm acquired NAI Haywards and opened new offices in London and Thames Valley, U.K.

The company's new Hamburg office is located at Valentinskamp 24 in the heart of the city's central business district.

"I was immediately excited by the opportunity to take part in shaping the future of one of the most dynamic real estate companies in Germany," says Loeffler. "I wholeheartedly share the company's principal-led philosophy, strong collaborative culture and client-focused approach. That's why I am especially happy now to be part of this great team. My goal is to quickly expand the Hamburg office and establish it as a permanent player in the local market."

Loeffler holds a Master's degree in business administration from the University of Hamburg. He has also completed several personal and professional development courses at Harvard Law School's Cambridge campus, the Accord Ecole de Langues in Paris and the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. In addition to being fluent in German and French, he is business proficient in English and has a basic understanding of Spanish.

Savci was educated at the EBZ European Centre for Education in Bochum, Germany and started his career at DTZ where he was a successful consultant the last two years.

Located on the Elbe River, Hamburg is the economic and cultural centre of Northern Germany. The HafenCity, an ultra-modern commercial and business district, is currently being built directly on the river and will be an important generator of future commercial real estate activity. The Elbe connects Hamburg to the North Sea and other key European and global markets. With a population of 3.5 million in a 755-square-kilometre metropolitan region, Hamburg serves as a central trading hub for Eastern and Northern Europe. Hamburg's container harbour ranks second in Europe and seventh in the world, and has sufficient capacity to handle the world's largest container ships. Hamburg's strategic inland location and excellent rail, waterway and highway connections link the region seamlessly with the rest of Europe and around the globe. In addition, Hamburg has more than 90 consulates, and 460 Asian companies have their European headquarters or a branch office in the area.

Known as a location for highly specialized industries, Hamburg is a leader in medical technology and biotechnology and serves as a world centre for aircraft construction, including such aircraft as the wide-bodied Airbus A380. The renowned Steinway piano is also built in Hamburg, while world-leading companies with a strong presence include mail-order firm Otto-Versand and chemical company Helm AG.

Today's announcement follows the opening of new Avison Young offices in Duesseldorf on March 19, Indianapolis, Indiana on March 12, 2015, and Minneapolis, Minnesota on March 2, 2015.

Avison Young is the world's fastest-growing commercial real estate services firm. Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Avison Young is a collaborative, global firm owned and operated by its principals. Founded in 1978, the company comprises 1,900 real estate professionals in 67 offices, providing value-added, client-centric investment sales, leasing, advisory, management, financing and mortgage placement services to owners and occupiers of office, retail, industrial and multi-family properties.

For further information/comment/photos:

• Sherry Quan, Principal, Global Director of Communications & Media Relations,
Avison Young: 604.647.5098; cell: 604.726.0959

• Mark Rose, Chair and CEO, Avison Young: 416.673.4028

In Germany, please contact:

• Udo Stoeckl, Principal and Managing Director, Frankfurt,
Avison Young: +49 69 7593 7233

• Thomas Loeffler, Managing Director, Hamburg,
Avison Young: +49 (0)40 311 12 140

Avison Young's new Hamburg office is located at: Valentinskamp 24, 20354 Hamburg

www.avisonyoung.com

Avison Young was a winner of Canada's Best Managed Companies program in 2011, 2012 and 2013 and has demonstrated its commitment to the program and successfully reapplied for the designation as a Gold Standard winner in 2014.

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•Editors/Reporters
Please click on links to view and download photos of Thomas Loeffler and Aram Savci:
http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/Thomas_Loeffler.jpg
http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/Aram_Savci.jpg

SOURCE Avison Young Commercial Real Estate (BC)