Industrial Brokerage Experience

Property Disposition

• Wickes

  

  Wickes Furniture had recently filed for bankruptcy with Wells Fargo as the primary creditor.  Wickes owned a retail/distribution facility on 11.3 acres in downtown Wheeling which had become vacant. Based on their experience of similar land projects, Wells Fargo hired Jack Rosenberg and Fred Regnery to conduct a national marketing campaign to find the best buyer for the highest price.  Wheeling had identified the property as a mixed use redevelopment site in their land plan.

• Advantest America Inc.

  Advantest America Inc. (AAI), the California headquarters of a Japanese-based technology corporation, had marketed for sale a highly improved but virtually unused microchip testing facility in Buffalo Grove, Illinois.  After four years of unsuccessful marketing by another brokerage, AAI retained Colliers Bennett & Kahnweiler Inc. (Colliers B&K) to sell the property.

New Facility Purchase or Lease

• Klein Tools

  

  Klein Tools (Klein), a well-known manufacturer of high-end tools for the construction industry, was seeking state-of-the-art facilities that would increase the cost effectiveness of their manufacturing process.  The company was committed to manufacturing in the United States as a way to control quality, contain costs, and compete with Asian imports.  Colliers Bennett & Kahnweiler (Colliers B&K) enjoyed a 15-year relationship with Klein, taking them through assignments ranging from 15,000-square-foot requirements for their many subsidiaries to this headquarters build-to-suit transaction.

• Mohawk Industries

  

  Colliers Bennett & Kahnweiler (Colliers B&K), in partnership with Alliance Partners, represented Mohawk Industries, the leading producer and distributor of flooring worldwide, in a 680,000-square-foot transaction with multiple parts that spanned more than 24 months.

• Kraus Royal Scot

  Kraus Royal Scot Inc, (Kraus), a Lemont based carpet and flooring distributor, had outgrown their existing 63,612 sf warehouse / distribution, but remained committed to a two year lease term with their current landlord.  After interviewing several corporate real estate providers, Kraus hired Jack Rosenberg and Fred Regnery to determine the best real estate strategy to maintain their growth and minimize their real estate costs.

• The Faucet Queens, Inc.

  The Faucet Queens, Inc, (TFQ), an importer of home hardware products sold thorugh non-hardware store retail chains, was seeking to reduce its occupancy costs in a 58,132 square foot Lake County distribution and headquarters facility and extent its lease.  TFQ was committed to its lease for 12 months at an above market lease rate. The company wanted to remain in the immediate area because of its customer base and the high quality of the existing building.

Lease Renegotiation

• Ulta

  

  Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrances, Inc (“ULTA”), the largest beauty retailer in the country, was exploring alternatives for their Midwest distribution facility in Chicago. Ulta was committed to its lease for 24 months at an above-market lease rate. Additionally, they had approximately 35,000 SF of office space in the DC which made a potential move costly. Due to their fast growing organization, ULTA was unable to commit to a long term lease extension.

• LG Electronics

  

  Duke Realty, LG Electronics’ Landlord in Romeoville, IL, asked LG to relinquish 55,000 SF two years prior to its expiration to accommodate another tenant’s expansion requirement.  LG hired Jack Rosenberg and Fred Regnery to assist LG in analyzing the Landlord’s proposal, to maximize Landlord concessions and to extend the lease for two years. During this negotiation, LG increased the amount of product that would flow through the building, meaning that they would not be able to reduce their size. However, LG still wanted Landlord concessions and a short term lease extension.

• Office Concepts

  

  Office Concepts, a provider of workplace solutions and the largest Steelcase dealer in the Midwest, was seeking to reduce their occupancy costs in their 130,000 SF Lake County distribution facility and extend their lease term.  Office Concepts was committed to their lease for 18 months at an above market lease rate.  The company also desired to remain in the immediate area because of their customer base and the high quality of their existing building.  Operating under these restrictions, Fred Regnery identified an opportunity to reduce Office Concepts’ lease rate retro-actively and created a process to achieve results that exceeded their savings estimations.

• USA Blue Book

  USA Blue Book (USABB), an HD Supply Co., a provider of industrial supplies to water treatment facilities throughout the U.S., engaged Colliers Bennett & Kahnweiler Inc. (Colliers B&K) to evaluate its lease situation and to determine how USABB could expand their facility while lowering its operating costs. USABB occupied 76,613 square feet, with 33% office buildout and a 60,000-square-foot three-story mezzanine in the warehouse.

• Arvato Digital Services

  

  Arvato Digital Services (“Arvato”), a division of Bertelsmann AG, was seeking to reduce their occupancy costs in their 534,000SF WI distribution facility and extend their lease term.  Arvato was committed to their lease for 12 months at an above market lease rate. Additionally, the corporate structure of the company prevented them from committing to a long-term deal.  The company also desired to remain in the immediate area because of the availability of labor for their large seasonal swings.  Operating under these restrictions, Jack and Fred identified an opportunity to reduce Arvato’s lease rate retro-actively and created a process to achieve results that exceeded their savings estimations.

Sale Leaseback

• Hospital Laundry Services

  Hospital Laundry Services (“HLS”), a non for profit hospital consortium, owned a 310,000 SF industrial building and hired Jack Rosenberg and Fred Regnery to explore real estate disposition options as they looked at selling the business. After HLS selected a buyer, the successful sale and leaseback of the facility to a real estate investor became a critical component of the company sale transaction. Jack and Fred identified the best buyer to execute the real estate purchase which allowed the company sale to proceed as planned. The transaction was complicated by the necessity of the purchaser of HLS to close on the real estate sale and company purchase concurrently.