London, 26th March 2007 - Jones Lang LaSalle has opened an office in Turkey and has won the property management and leasing contract at the country’s largest shopping centre, the 346,000 sq.m Istanbul Cevahir retail and leisure complex in the heart of Istanbul. Alastair Hughes, CEO says: “Following our opening in Dubai last year this further extends our operating footprint and enhances our ability to service our clients.”
Richard M Davies, formerly head of Shopping Centre Management in the UK, has relocated to Istanbul to lead the firms’ new Turkish operations. Richard will be joined by Marc Mills (Portfolio Manager from our Manchester office), Elif Egeli Nisanci (Vice President of Business Development in our Hotels team); as well as three other new recruits. Catherine Lambert has taken over Richard's position as head of UK Shopping Centre Management.
Richard M Davies concluded: “Turkey is of growing interest to international investors and retailers, attracting strong inward investment flows from Russia, Germany, the Middle East and other EMEA countries.
“Our new office will initially be housed within the Istanbul Cevahir scheme which was the subject of a $750m purchase by St Martins Property, a deal which we advised on. St Martins has appointed Jones Lang LaSalle as managing and leasing agents in the largest single mandate to be awarded in Europe so far this year. These two mandates and the scope for future opportunities in this market were the drivers behind our decision to extend our business in Turkey.”