London offers a unique combination of access to markets, skilled people, finance and quality of life.
London is home to more headquarters than any other city in Europe, so it is no surprise it has been voted Europe’s number one business city for 22 years running, ranking first for city improvement, easy access to markets, qualified staff, internal transport links, external transport links, languages spoken and telecommunications.
Major development opportunities to the east of the city are an integral part of the Thames Gateway, including Canary Wharf, the Greenwich Peninsula and Stratford City.
Why Thames Gateway London for business?
- London has the largest venture capital and private equity industry after the United States
- London’s office hours overlap with those countries that collectively account for 99% of the world’s GDP
- London has 45 higher education institutions, with seven universities ranked in the world’s top 200 – more than any other city in the world
- London attracts more international companies from the ICT, electronics, financial services and creative industries than any other European city
- London City Airport offers direct flights to 33 key business destinations in Europe, as well as to New York, and is on the doorstep of the Thames Gateway area
- Due to open in 2018, Crossrail will link Heathrow with central London, Canary Wharf and Stratford City. The journey time from Canary Wharf to Heathrow will be just 39 minutes
- Major developments in east London include:
Canary Wharf
Over the last two decades Canary Wharf has emerged as one of Europe’s most prestigious business locations, with a working population of over 93,000, close proximity to the City of London, over 200 shops, restaurants and bars and excellent transport links.
The area provides a unique investment proposition given its high profile financial services, management consultancy, legal and real estate clusters. Canary Wharf also boasts a huge talent pool, modern financial infrastructure, Level39 – which is Europe’s largest accelerator space for finance, retail and future cities technologies companies – and from 2018, a direct Crossrail link to Heathrow.
Greenwich Peninsula
The Greenwich Peninsula is a new district for London covering 190 acres and featuring homes, offices, schools, shops and community facilities. When complete, the area will boast 10,000 new homes, 3.5 million sq ft of offices, and 350,000 sq ft of retail space.
Minutes from Canary Wharf, the West End and London’s City Airport, the area already supports growing clusters of technology and digital companies and a university, as well as the world’s most visited entertainment arena, the O2. London’s first cable car, Emirates Air Line, links the Greenwich Peninsula to the Royal Docks
Stratford City
Stratford City is London’s most significant development project since Canary Wharf. Scene of the London 2012 Olympic Games the area is also home to Westfield Stratford City, Europe’s largest urban shopping centre.
The new International Quarter is a 50/50 joint venture between Lend Lease and London and Continental Railways and will provide 4 million sq ft of flexible, competitively-priced office accommodation. With a new Crossrail station opening in 2018 and the existing HS1 connecting to St Pancras International, Stratford City is set to be one of the best connected places in Europe.
Royal Docks
The Royal Docks lie within the stretch of land that runs from Stratford down the River Lea to the Thames, an ‘arc of opportunity’ identified as having £22 billion of development potential. The Enterprise Zone sits within this wider Royal Docks opportunity area and aims to support economic growth and create new businesses and jobs.
The Royal Docks development already boasts the Siemens ‘Crystal’ which is the world’s largest exhibition on the future of cities and one of the most sustainable buildings in the world, the University of East London, ExCel exhibition and International Convention Centre, London City Airport and recently ABP, one of China’s largest commercial developers, announced it would generate up to 20,000 jobs in the Royal Albert Dock.
