Nearly half of warehouse occupiers intend to grow their footprint over the next year, Tritax Big Box and Savills’ Future Space survey has revealed.
The survey, based on responses from around 400 occupiers, investors and developers, found that 32% of occupiers view market conditions as being better than 12 months ago, while 51% believe they have remained the same.
Looking forward, 43% are expecting improvement over 2026, whilst 52% believe conditions will continue as they are.
As confidence improves, occupiers are signalling growing demand: 47% expect to increase their warehouse footprint over the next 12 months and 64% anticipate expanding over the next one to three years.
The rising cost of labour continues to be the top business issue for occupier respondents, with 57% identifying it as a challenge. Labour availability was an issue for 39% of respondents in 2025, up from 34% in 2024.
The respondents indentified AI adoption (59%), electric vans (56%) and warehouse robotics/automation (55%) as key investment areas.
Henry Stratton, head of research, Tritax Big Box, said: “Future Space affirms what we’re hearing in the market – that occupier confidence is growing, and more requirements should emerge in 2026.
“High-quality, modern buildings are only increasing in importance as occupiers look to their real estate as a place where efficiency and productivity gains and competitive advantage can be achieved.”
Andrew Blennerhassett, associate director in the Savills industrial and logistics research team, added: “The latest edition of Future Space points towards improving sentiment despite ongoing macro-economic headwinds. What’s more, it is fascinating to see how occupier priorities have shifted over the past nine years.
“In particular, we have seen power availability become critical as more businesses look to adopt AI, utilise electric vehicles fleets and incorporate automation. More traditional concerns also remain on the agenda, as rising labour costs and achieving net zero aspirations remain a challenge for many.
“These are all factors that will influence occupier strategy moving forward, with an emphasis on resilience.”
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