0 Wayfair’s Chic Boston Office Space Reflects its Core Products

Posted on February 1, 2016 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Boston.com

Wayfair has come to the market with creative radio and TV ads and changed the traditional office environment from cubes and offices into collaborative environment for its ever expanding workforce.

From Boston.com:

With names like “Nordic,” “Safari,” “Whimsy,” and “Cat Tree,” each room at Wayfair’s headquarters at 4 Copley Place is themed to remind employees of a motif or product the rapidly expanding company sells. While “Safari” might feature zebra-print rugs and exotic throw pillows, employees working in “Cat Tree” get to enjoy a slightly quirkier office vibe with avocado-colored wallpaper covered in playful cats.

“We have all these smaller spaces set up to look like actual living rooms using the furniture we actually sell,” said Jess Merrell, event marketer for Wayfair. “That way everything feels more comfortable to get things done. We don’t have to go to Starbucks to have a private conversation.”

0 New Converse Building Sold for $150M

Posted on January 5, 2016 by Wil Catlin

Credit: B&T

Boston is getting a new landlord: a German pension fund just purchased the new Converse HQ in Brighton, MA. Boston continues to see an inflow into all asset classes against all price points.

Lovejoy Wharf:
• 232,000 Square Feet
• 197,000 of office
• 45,000 of retail
• 23,200 is the typical floor size
• 10 Stories

A Banker&Tradesman article notes that “at $800 per square foot, the transaction [for Boston’s Lovejoy Wharf] is slightly higher than the $750 per foot range for Class A office buildings that have sold in Boston this year. Approximately $8 billion in Greater Boston office deals have taken place in 2015, including nearly three-quarters to foreign investors.”

You can read more on the sale of the new Converse HQ on Banker&Tradesman, here.

0 Boston Restaurants Launch Waterfront Shipping Containers

Posted on December 22, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Boston.com

Some Boston restaurants are moving away from brick and mortar and migration to shipping containers. Jamestown’s Drydock facility is home to many of these new venues.

From Boston.com:

The term sheet for the Boston project says the company [Mei Mei] will lease up to eight custom-built shipping container kiosks. It’s all part of $100 million in upgrades to the The Innovation and Design Building as a whole, according to the building’s…other companies moving into containers include Niche Urban Garden Supply, Drydock Exchange, and the hair salon Cut-Splice. The kiosks will be open year-round and the space will offer indoor and outdoor seating.

0 Tesla Opens first Boston Store, Mulls Area Expansion

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BBJ

Boylston Street in Boston’s Back Bay continues to one of the nation’s top technology roads for retailers. Tesla @800 Boylston will open shorty and will accompany other tech retailers like:

Apple @ 815 Boylston
Verizon @ 699 Boylston
AT&T @ 745 Boylston
Microsoft @ 800 Boylston

Some history of Boylston Street from Wikipedia:

Boylston Street is the name of a major east-west thoroughfare in the city of Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston street was known as Frog Lane in the early 18th century and was later known as Common Street. It was later again renamed for Ward Nicholas Boylston (1747–1828),[1][2][3][4] a man of wealth and refinement, an officer of the Crown, and philanthropist. Boylston, who was a descendent of Zabdiel Boylston,[5] was born in Boston and spent much of his life in it. The Boylston Market was named after him as was the town of Boylston, Massachusetts.[3]

According to the BBJ, “A second new store will open in the Derby Street Shoppes in Hingham in December…Tesla spokeswoman Alexis Georgeson said the company also has an interest in opening a store in Chestnut Hill, but has no plans right now.”

You can read more on Tesla’s planned Boston expansion on the Boston Business Journal.

0 New Financial District Eatery: Serafina

Posted on October 28, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Serafina restaurant in Boston Financial District

Credit: Boston Globe

10 High Street in Boston’s Financial District is home to a new eatery, Serafina. Fresh, modern Italian cooking.

At a glance, courtesy of the Boston Globe:

What
Some 30 black-and-white stills from Federico Fellini films, placed throughout the Financial District Italian restaurant.

Whose idea
Restaurant designer Petra Hausberger of Brookline’s Somerton Park Interiors wanted to festoon Serafina with shots from Fellini movies like “La Dolce Vita” and “8½” because they would “engulf the space in fantasy and glamour.” Helpfully, a close friend is an archivist at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in LA. Hausberger was sent digital copies of the stills, many of which feature actress Anita Ekberg.

Contact
10 High St.
Financial District, Boston
617-426-1234
Serafinaboston.com

0 Tesla Store Coming to Boylston Street in Boston

Posted on October 27, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BBJ

Boylston Street continues its technology leadership role with anchor stores from Apple, Verizon, AT&T, Microsoft to its newest Tesla Motors. Tesla will be one of the newest addition to the Shops at Prudential in Boston’s Back Bay. The Prudential complex consists of:

800 Boylston Street
101 Huntington Avenue
111 Huntington Avenue
888 Boylston Street

A BBJ article, covering the announcement of a Back Bay Tesla store, notes the following:

“We are excited to have a larger presence in Boston,” said a Tesla spokeswoman in an email, adding the store would host an “opening event” in the next several weeks. She declined to discuss any other other details of the retail store. Tesla already has two stores in Massachusetts, one in Natick and one in Dedham. The company also has a service center in Watertown. A company spokesman recently told the Boston Herald that it has plans to open more stores in Massachusetts over the next two years.

0 More Seaport Office and Retail Space Coming to Fort Point Garage

Posted on June 29, 2015 by Wil Catlin

22 Boston Wharf Road in Boston Seaport

New Seaport office space is coming thanks to Berkeley Investments. According to the BBJ, “Berkeley Investments has plans to add two office floors atop the Stillings Street parking garage at 22 Boston Wharf Road…[and] is also proposing to add street-level retail to Boston Wharf Road, which is a relatively short connecting road between Congress Street and Seaport Boulevard, as well as additional windows along the side of the building that abuts the Q Street park.”

The building at 22 Boston Wharf Road currently includes 241,124-square-feet and has been assessed at $26.435 million, based on information in the BBJ from the city assessor.

0 Overhaul of Prudential Center Food Court Presents Lunchtime Void

Posted on June 16, 2015 by Wil Catlin

food court at the prudential center in Back bay

Credit: The Boston Globe

For 22 years the food court at the Pru has been a Back Bay mainstay, come June 30th it will be a memory. Boston Properties despite their lack of comment have a clear vision for their customers and execute flawlessly. Rest assured, lunch will be served again, just be patient while our city continues to change.

From the Boston Globe:

The food court at the Shops at the Prudential is scheduled to close at the end of June, and its replacement, a massive Eataly marketplace, won’t open for more than a year…Some applaud the decision to open an Eataly, which hopes to draw 5 million customers a year, in the space in September 2016. At least until the marketplace opens, the lunch-scene void is an opportunity for other businesses, said Ani Collum, a partner at the Norwell consultancy Retail Concepts…Collum said food trucks and other mobile vendors should set up near the Pru to cash in because time-strapped workers may not have a long enough break to eat at a restaurant. Nearby establishments would also be smart to offer to deliver to the office buildings, she said.

0 BXBS of Massachusetts Moves to 101 Huntington Ave

Posted on June 16, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Boston Business Journal

Gone are the tall private cubes, now, contemporary office space is much more open and collaborative with bright colors. Healthcare in particular has gone through a tremendous transformation over the year. One of the most visible changes is how they use their office space. BXBS is showing off their new headquarters at 101 Huntington Avenue owner by Boston Properties.

According to a post on the BBJ, accompanying a slideshow of the new Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts HQ, the new space “takes up the 11th through the 20th floors of the building, with the exception of the utility floor on the 14th floor. The new space is 60,000 square feet smaller than its previous space — clocking in at 308,000 square feet and will save the insurer $2 million annually…The space has also been renovated to have the signature white and blue color scheme throughout. The color scheme mixed with bright LED lights give the headquarters a futuristic feel.”

Follow the link to view the BBJ’s full office slideshow.

Related Real Estate Listings
Fenway office space for lease
Back Bay office space

0 Luke’s Lobster Opening in Back Bay

Posted on June 10, 2015 by Wil Catlin

A new food option is coming to Back Bay on Exeter Street. Look out Downtown, Back Bay has it: Luke’s Lobster!

From Bostinno:

Luke’s Lobster will be opening at 75 Exeter Street, at the base of the Avalon Communities. The new outpost will be a casual seafood shack – similar to its other locations in NYC, Philadelphia, DC, and Chicago. The menu will focus on fresh lobster, crab and shrimp rolls, along with a selection of chowders and bisques…The seafood shack is known for sourcing all of their lobster from Maine and, in addition to their affordable $16 lobster rolls, the restaurant also offers a tasty lobster grilled cheese sandwich for only $12.