Powerful drivers will lift up logistics again

The logistics sector has seen low demand at a European level recently, with a few exceptions, but the situation will change in the medium term because the fundamentals are extremely positive. That was the message from René Buck, president and CEO of BCI Global speaking at Expo Real yesterday in his presentation on ‘The occupier’s perspective’.

“We are seeing a reorganization of production and a reorganization of supply chains,” he said. “Companies in Europe are changing their distribution models to make sure they can deliver to their clients, so they are more likely to have three or four regional distribution centers rather than one continental one.”

The I&L sector also has some powerful drivers, such as the life sciences and defense industries which are set to grow, and e-commerce which Buck said, “is likely to go back up to pandemic levels again.” Many buildings are becoming obsolete, which precents an opportunity for transformation, upgrades and brown-to-green strategies, he added.

Optimization initiatives are being driven by external factors, said Buck: while companies can deal with regulatory changes, sustainability requirements, new technologies, changing customer demands and increasing competition, they can have no input into the geopolitical uncertainty, trade tariffs, economic uncertainty and climate change issues which are impacting their business on a daily basis.

Occupiers’ main business concerns are political instability, trade tariffs, slow economic growth, the need to de-risk supply chains and modify supply. There’s also an increasing regionalization trend, both at a global level with the decentralization of production and reshoring, and at a European level, with more regional and hybrid network structures instead of a pan-European distribution centers.

On the real estate front, the challenges for occupiers are the short term availability of suitable sites or modern sustainable buildings in logistics hotspots, the cost of land and leases, the lack of workforces and high attrition rates, connectivity issues such as road traffic and the energy grid, and some hesitancy to invest in automation and robotization.

Published in Expo Day2 – Expo Real in Munich, Germany, 7 October 2025: Briefing the evolution of Logistics Real Estate.

For more information contact René Buck.