Case Study 2: Repositioning Strategy

Consistent and targeted messaging goes a long way...


Situation: An industrial building owner sought to revamp his ground floor leasing program to bring in a new calibre of tenant oriented toward high end arts and design/craft production.  The building had a hodge podge mix of artists but lacked any over-arching branding strategy.  The owner wanted to divide and build out space as prospective tenants signed leases and made commitments.

Evaluation: Krieger Batchelder assesed the building's current position through a comprehensive market survey emphasizing field research:
  • The property was in an excellent fringe location close to the subway going straight to the center of the arts district on the west side of Manhattan.
  • The fringe  location would difficult for some people because it was isolated and industrial; however, this appeals greatly to the DIY subculture prevalent in Brooklyn. 
  • The owner was seeking very high rents for the neighborhood from a tenant base that is not typically flush with cash.
  • There was no consistent brand message attached to the current marketing efforts.  There was no consistent story being communicated to the public about the building.

Solution: Krieger Batchelder realized that it would be necessary to devise a coherent communication plan for the building in order to create a brand that spoke to its audience with clarity.  We sought to bolster the rents by positioning the loft space to a high end Williamsburg / Manhattan market.
  • Krieger Batchelder identified the online advertising venues that would reach the target arts/design audience.  These venues tend to be extremely cluttered with poorly executed marketing materials.  We created a series of campaigns that established a cogent story about the building: we were selling the building as an arts outpost.
  • We identified through market research the keywords that would help prospective tenants find our ads online.  We used these words to deliver our message to the target audiences.  The power of choosing the right keywords is VERY STRONG.  From our advertising we recieved a steady stream of potential tenants.
  • Krieger Batchelder managed the negotiation/leasing process.  We worked with the owner through every step of the leasing cycle to help bring in quality te. 

Result: Over a twelve month period we followed the demand-cycles and filled up the space. We were able to deliver a diverse tenant-mix that mitigates risk for the owner, with leases ranging from 1-5 years and for 250-7000sf.  Having a diverse tenant mix ensured a steady stream of income for the building.

Krieger Batchelder is available to discuss leasing programs and to help devise repositioning strategies for buildings.