Double the amount of logistics space was taken up in Q1 compared with the previous year, with a record amount of space under offer.

According to new numbers from CBRE, take-up of UK logistics space totalled 10.43m sq ft for the quarter, up from 5.21m sq ft in Q1 2021. The quarter saw a total of 41 deals – a 64% increase compared to Q1 2021, when 25 deals were completed.

Tasos Vezyridis, head of UK and EMEA industrial, logistics and retail research at CBRE, said: “Supply is continuing to respond to demand and in Q1 we have seen record levels of speculative space under construction. However, around a third of this had already been taken by the end of the quarter and, as a result, the UK vacancy rate continues to fall.”

CBRE said the strong take-up figures were backed up by a record amount of logistics space under offer. This has soared to 22.46m sq ft across 48 prospective deals, an increase of 40% compared with the previous record set in Q1 2021, when 16m sq ft was under offer.

CBRE tracks all warehouses in excess of 100,000 sq ft in size and with an eaves height of more than 10m.

Take-up was dominated by third-party logistics, which accounted for 27%. Despite the continued climb of pure online retail, which accounted for 40% of take-up in 2021, this quarter it accounted for just 4.8% of take-up. A more even spread across sectors, including manufacturing, construction, food and other retail, was also in evidence this quarter.

Jonathan Compton, senior director of UK industrial and logistics at CBRE, said: “At sector level, take-up has been very strong, even though the traditional key driver, online retail, has taken a back seat for now. This shows the diversity in the types of occupiers currently seeking a significant quantity of warehouse space throughout the UK. With a record-breaking amount of space under offer at the end of Q1 2022, we are set for a busy few months to come.”

The M1 corridor remains the favoured location for UK logistics, with take-up in the South East and East Midlands representing more than half of the total Q1 2022 take-up at 53.6%. This was followed by West Midlands, North West, Scotland, South West and Yorkshire & North East accounting for 14.1%, 12.4%, 9%, 6.8%, and 4.1% respectively.