Firms looking to relocate to Ipswich
MANY businesses are actively looking to move into the town despite the economic downturn, according to new figures.And they include potential investors from countries including China, India and the United States.
By David Vincent
IPSWICH: Many businesses are actively looking to move into the town despite the economic downturn, according to new figures.
And they include potential investors from countries including China, India and the United States.
The latest Property Demand Quarterly Report from economic development partnership Choose Suffolk shows a rise in the number of companies searching its commercial property database over the last three months.
Ipswich took the top spot as the most searched for town in the county, with 212 searches, changing places with Lowestoft, which is now number two with 153 searches.
Bury St Edmunds re-entered the top three after achieving 88 searches, while Woodbridge and Beccles both continued to perform well.
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A breakdown of the figures on an individual company basis also shows Ipswich in top position, with 56 companies recorded as having searched for properties with the town.
Lowestoft is in second place, having had 29 companies searching for the town, and Bury St Edmunds third, with 12.
Two locations that entered the list for the first time during past quarter are Stowmarket and Elmswell.
The Ipswich borough also topped the ranking in terms of “done deals” for commercial property sold or rented during the quarter, followed by St Edmundsbury and Babergh.
Helene Gregson, inward investment manager at Choose Suffolk, said: “The number of companies searching on the site rose for the second quarter in a row and Ipswich is the most popular town on the site. We're also finding that companies are being more selective, both geographically and in terms of property size. While this could be down to continuing caution with regard to the recession, we are still witnessing robust activity, demonstrating Suffolk's appeal as a business location.”
Celia Hodson chief executive of Choose Suffolk, said, “Despite the continuing tough economic conditions, Suffolk's wide range of commercial premises, either for sale or to rent, are still attracting good levels of interest.”
