The Case for Nearshoring Manufacturing to Alberta

We’ve all heard how over the past couple of years there has been a newfound focus for companies to actively strategize and implement the relocation of their manufacturing activities away from overseas (and politically diverse) countries to more optimal locations, being those with comparable political, economic, timezone and trade policies. For North American companies, the logical case lies to the south in Mexico - and the growth is exponential there - but in this article I’d like to pose the thought experiment of analyzing Alberta, in particular, to capture some of this excessive market demand.

Investment, TrendsBronwyn ScrivensFebruary 26, 2024manufacturing, onshoring, nearshoring, albertaComment

Five features of Edmonton’s industrial market rounding out 2023.

What a ride 2023 has been so far for businesses across the province and beyond! The sheer scale of compounding factors being vollied at companies as they try to regain balance and grow their income is farsical. How does anyone project into the future and plan for growth, or perhaps conservation, when so many opposing factors are at play. I’ve outlined Five Takeaways that we are seeing play out in the industrial asset class, from leasing, to sales, construction costs to trends and opportunties.

Market, Trends, EconomicsBronwyn ScrivensOctober 25, 2023trends, manufacturing, Lease, Sale, construction, alberta, edmontonComment

Where has all the distribution space gone, Alberta?

It truly wasn’t long ago, maybe 12 months or less, that Edmonton and Calgary were flush, perhaps too flush, with Class A speculative distribution space. In the matter of not years, but months, the inventory in both major cities has been absorbed by household names who have entered the Alberta market in quick succession. Regardless of submarket - north, south, east, west or periphery - the pickings are now unbelievably slim for large distribution tenants looking to take advantage of the low cost environment in our province and move into warehouse space within the calendar year.

Perhaps the first Alberta-focused Industrial Real Estate Podcast!

I recently had the enjoyment of sitting down with my esteemed colleague and friend, Chad Griffiths, Partner at NAI Commercial, and Gerald Tostowaryk, host of The Real World of Real Estate podcast, to discuss the past year and our upcoming projections for the Alberta industrial real estate market.

The big energy problem, and the [nu]clear solution.

I was pleasantly surprised to hear that Alberta, along with Ontario, Saskatchewan and New Brunswick, have all signed on to help further develop nuclear reactor technology in Canada. The goal of this program is to support the advancement and deployment of nuclear energy through small modular reactors (SMRs), a fresh, new technology that greatly differs from standard nuclear reactors, both in size, flexibility and overall safety.

Technology, Investment, DevelopmentBronwyn Scrivens, Omada CommercialSeptember 20, 2020Energy, Green Energy, Development, nuclear energy, alberta, Canada, RenewableComment

Commercial tax rates continue to rise in Edmonton and Calgary; concurrently, their periphery markets ranked among most entrepreneurial in Canada.

In what appears to be a long, slow road ahead for the Alberta marketplace, it is essential that the City of Edmonton and the City of Calgary find ways to spend smarter, not harder, in order to improve the entrepreneurial mindset in these cities, increase business confidence, and slow the outward migration.

Thought Leadership

Bronwyn Scrivens, SIOR is a licensed real estate agent with: