Distant Focus Corp. sought to move its optics R&D business from the U.S. Midwest to Tucson, Arizona. The owners wanted to take advantage of a skilled workforce and vibrant optics ecosystem that they could find by locating in Tucson industrial space.

Challenge

Distant Focus was moving into a new commercial real estate market and needed help finding the right Tucson industrial space. After a search by Commercial Real Estate Group of Tucson, there were two buildings that seemed to fit the bill. But it was hard for Distance Focus to figure out which was better:

• a building that was the right size, but needed improvement
• a space that was larger than what was needed, but did not require improvements.

Response

CREG Tucson has a methodical process for comparing Tucson industrial space with different assets and liabilities. It was able to plug in the data and determine which deal was better for the client.

CREG Tucson also has close ties with the local optics industry and deep expertise on its commercial real estate needs.

Results

The comparison showed that Distant Focus would save more than $90,000 over the term of the lease for the larger building given the savings in construction cost.
The company also relied on CREG Tucson to hire local companies that could help in its move to Tucson. CREG Tucson also introduced company officials to key players in the local optics business community.

Take-aways

• Hire a commercial real estate professional who knows your industry and its needs.
• Use a broker who is in the area you are moving to. That person will have deep knowledge of the local commercial property market.
• Check out a broker’s methods and processes. An experienced operation will have systems in place that make it easy to identify the best deal for you.

Contact Michael Coretz for a free consultation on moving your business to Tucson, 1-520-299-3400.

Read other CREG Tucson case studies.