During the summer, the first finished building of the Nová Zbrojovka development project, ZET.office, will become home to the headquarters of Kiwi.com, the most successful Czech start-up company. The air ticket seller is the first company to have signed a lease agreement for premises in the newly developed quarter in Brno-Židenice and it will be the first enterprise to breathe new life into it. The owner and investor of the Nová Zbrojovka project is CPI Property Group.
Kiwi.com’s new home for its headquarters will be in the ZET.office building that has emerged from the reconstruction of a former tool shop. “Within the Czech Republic, Nová Zbrojovka is a unique and unparalleled project with an unmistakable spirit of genius. It makes us immensely proud to see Kiwi.com put its trust in both the project and CPI Property Group. It is of course our great obligation, but we will do all in our power to ensure that both the tenant and the company’s employees are happy in our office building,“ said Pavel Hain-Schmiedberský, Head of Asset Management for Office Buildings in the Czech Republic at CPI Property Group. “A debt of gratitude is owed to Lukáš Netolický of Cushman & Wakefield who was instrumental in arranging the transaction on behalf of the client,” he added.
Kiwi.com will move into its new offices from Campus Science Park on the other side of Brno. The company will have at its disposal almost 11,000 m² of office space spread over five floors. According to Lukáš Netolický of Cushman & Wakefield, the agreement reached between Kiwi.com and CPI Property Group amounts to the biggest commercial lease transaction concluded on the Brno property market in 2019.
“Brno will remain the main base for Kiwi.com even after we move into the new headquarters. As our company develops and grows, new requirements come along, such as being more efficient in collaborating remotely or reducing our carbon footprint. We are confident that Nová Zbrojovka’s ZET.office provides the best solution in this regard,” said Kiwi.com CEO Oliver Dlouhý, shedding some light on the reasons behind the office move.
“This transaction is yet another example of a successful brownfield revitalisation and use in the city’s central area. It ticks the boxes when it comes to meeting the high demands placed on working environments for employees as well as finding suitable opportunities for office development in crowded city centres,” said Lukáš Netolický, Head of Regional Cities in the Czech Republic at Cushman & Wakefield.
The architectural side of reconstructing the part of the building to be occupied by Kiwi.com was an assignment taken on by architects from Prague’s Studio Perspektiv, a specialist in office space redesigns. Architects and designers of Studio Perspektiv already have in their portfolio nearly 100,000 m² of working environments redesigned for around two dozen clients. Those clients include ambitious start-ups, international corporations and leaders in their respective industries. The objective of the studio is always to transform traditional workplaces into inspirational office spaces redolent with impulses that drive interaction and cooperation in the workplace.
Legal support for the transaction with Kiwi.com was provided courtesy of law offices KROUPAHELÁN advokátní kancelář, s.r.o. “Even though the transaction was concerned with an extensive and complex project, the negotiations progressed in a friendly and constructive atmosphere. I am sure Kiwi.com will meet with great success operating from the new premises,” said Jiří Helán, partner at KROUPAHELÁN.
Nová Zbrojovka is an extensive, long-term development project pursued by CPI Property Group within the premises of the former Zbrojovka Brno industrial complex. The 22-hectare brownfield in Brno’s wider central area is gradually being transformed into a modern, living and easily accessible neighbourhood offering high-quality housing, a wide assortment of services as well as countless opportunities for both work and relaxation.
The ZET.office building in the northern part of the former industrial complex marries the industrial history of the locale with today’s demands as regards the features and qualities of working environments. Despite the radical reconstruction, the building retains its industrial character, yet it now boasts high standards of environmental certification. The premises offer offices in unconventional configurations spread over three loft floors and one traditional floor. They are filled with state-of-the-art technologies and conform to the latest working environment design trends.
