For this month’s Five Minutes With… interview, we reconnect with Ben Oughton, Development Director at Jaynic Property Group.

How would you describe the current demand for logistics and industrial space across East Anglia? Are there any particular sectors driving activity?

Demand for logistics and industrial space across East Anglia is highly resilient, characterised by low vacancy rates and a severe shortage of new speculative Grade A units.

While economic uncertainty has tempered some expansion plans, well-specified industrial assets continue to attract strong occupier interest.

Key sectors driving demand include food production and processing, agriculture and agri-tech, advanced manufacturing, renewable energy, and e-commerce. The continued growth of the ports sector, particularly around Felixstowe, alongside investment in clean energy projects and infrastructure.

East Anglia is home to some of the UK’s most important ports and transport corridors. What opportunities do you see for the region over the next decade?

Over the next decade, East Anglia is well placed to strengthen its position as a leading UK logistics and industrial hub. Continued investment in major ports, road and rail infrastructure, and clean energy projects will enhance supply chain efficiency and attract further occupier demand. The region is expected to benefit from growth in offshore wind, advanced manufacturing, agri-tech, and food production, creating increased requirements for warehousing, distribution, and specialist industrial facilities.

As businesses prioritise resilient supply chains and sustainable operations, demand for modern, energy-efficient industrial space should remain strong, supporting both inward investment and long-term economic growth across the region.

How important are transport links and infrastructure investment when occupiers are choosing locations today?

They are vitally important, and that is why Jaynic has chosen to concentrate its development activities on the A14 with schemes including Suffolk Park in Bury St Edmunds, Gateway 14 at Stowmarket and our development proposals at Cambridge Services at Boxworth.

This corridor is strategically important for the UK economy because it connects the Port of Felixstowe—Britain’s busiest container port handling nearly half of the country’s container trade—directly to the “Golden Triangle” of logistics in the Midlands.

As occupiers seek greater operational resilience and faster delivery networks, well-connected industrial and logistics hubs continue to outperform less accessible locations, particularly for manufacturing, distribution and e-commerce businesses.

Looking ahead, how do you see logistics property requirements changing? Are occupiers looking for something different from a warehouse or distribution facility than they were five years ago?

Warehouses are no longer passive holding areas. Occupiers, such as The Range on Gateway 14, now prioritise warehouse output over expansion and require specific features, such as perfectly flat floors for robotics and dense vertical racking.

AI-driven systems and electric vehicle fleets require vastly higher power availability. Increasingly, we find that occupiers want “green-certified” or net-zero-ready buildings to meet their corporate sustainability goals.

This includes features like LED sensor lighting, rainwater harvesting, smart climate control, and EV charging. Occupiers often require robust local grid connections and on-site generation.

If you could change one thing to unlock economic growth and investment in East Anglia, what would it be?

If I could change one thing to unlock greater economic growth in East Anglia, it would be to accelerate investment in transport and utility infrastructure. Improved road and rail connections, enhanced port capacity, and greater power availability would make the region even more attractive for industrial occupiers, manufacturers and investors.

Faster planning and infrastructure delivery would also unlock strategic employment sites and support the growth of sectors such as clean energy, advanced manufacturing and logistics.

By creating the right infrastructure platform, East Anglia could strengthen its competitive advantage, attract higher-value investment, create skilled jobs and deliver sustained long-term economic growth.

Jaynic