
Cushman & Wakefield plc is a global
commercial real estate services firm. The company's corporate headquarters is located in
Chicago,
Illinois.
Cushman & Wakefield is among the world's largest
commercial real estate services firms, with revenues of US$9.4 billion in 2021. The company operates from approximately 400 offices in 60 countries, has around 50,000 employees and manages about of commercial space. It is one of the "Big Three" commercial real estate services companies, alongside
CBRE and
JLL.
History
Cushman & Wakefield was founded in
New York City on October 31, 1917, by brothers-in-law J. Clydesdale Cushman and Bernard Wakefield.
In the 1960s, Cushman & Wakefield began a national expansion, establishing offices throughout the U.S.
In 1969,
RCA acquired Cushman & Wakefield, selling its stake to
The Rockefeller Group in 1976.
In 1989,
Mitsubishi Estate Co. Ltd. became the majority shareholder in The Rockefeller Group.
In 1990, a presence in Europe was established through the acquisition of Healey & Baker. George Healey founded the firm in 1910, taking building leases near Regent's Park during the construction of Regent Street. He was joined by partner George Henry Baker, who joined the firm in 1910, and whose name was added to the firm's in 1920. Baker initiated the firm's focus on commercial property.
In 1994, C&W worldwide partnership was established with real estate services firms in the U.S.,
Europe,
Asia, South America,
Mexico, and
Canada.
In 2001, Cushman & Wakefield acquired Cushman Realty Corporation (CRC), increasing its presence on the West Coast and Southwest United States, bringing CRC founders
John C. Cushman III
John C. Cushman III (1941 – May 4, 2023) was an American real estate executive. He was the chairman of global transactions and chairman of the board of Cushman & Wakefield, a global real estate services firm founded by his grandfather, J. Cl ...
and Louis B. Cushman back to the firm founded by their grandfather, J. Clydesdale Cushman and great-uncle, Bernard Wakefield. John C. Cushman became Chairman of the Board of Directors, and Louis B. Cushman, Vice Chairman.
In 2002, the Cushman & Wakefield Alliance Program was formed to expand service capabilities for clients in U.S. markets where owned offices were not maintained.
In 2007, IFIL (now known as
EXOR
Exor N.V. is a Dutch holding company incorporated in Netherlands and controlled by the Agnelli family through privately held company ''Giovanni Agnelli B.V.'' In 2021 it recorded revenues of more than $136 billion, with a Net Asset Value (NAV) of ...
), the investment group of the
Agnelli family, acquired an approximately 70 percent stake in Cushman & Wakefield becoming the firm's majority shareholders and replacing the
Rockefeller Group as majority shareholder of the firm. That same year, Cushman & Wakefield carried out a series of acquisitions which include real estate investment banking firm Sonnenblick Goldman, Semco, Alston Nock.
On February 24, 2015, it was confirmed that Exor SpA had approved management's hiring of
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and
Morgan Stanley to help look for a buyer for Cushman.
On May 11, 2015,
DTZ, a commercial-real-estate-services firm backed by private-equity giant
TPG,
PAG Asia Capital, and
Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTTP), agreed to buy Cushman & Wakefield Inc. for $2 billion.
On September 1, 2015, Cushman & Wakefield and DTZ merged.
The firm now operates under the Cushman & Wakefield brand. The new Cushman & Wakefield is majority owned by an investor group led by
TPG,
PAG, and OTPP. The two companies combined for $6 billion in revenues and 45,000 employees. In 2016, the two engaged in more than $191 billion in commercial real estate transactions and approximately 4.3 billion square feet under management.
In October 2017, Chaney Brooks became an alliance partner with Cushman & Wakefield establishing a foothold in the Hawaii & Guam markets by partnering with one of the oldest commercial real estate firms in the islands.
In March 2018, Cushman & Wakefield had debts amounting to $3.1 billion, an increase of $300 million compared with the end of 2017. The company had a debt-annual revenue ratio of 44%, which was higher than that of its competitors
CBRE Group,
JLL and
Zillow.
In June 2018, Cushman & Wakefield filed an S-1 form with the
Securities & Exchange Commission announcing its intent to be listed on the
NYSE.
It became listed on the New York Stock Exchange on August 2, 2018.
On November 9, 2020, Cushman & Wakefield purchased significantly all of the holdings of Triad Commercial Properties. Tom Townes will be the managing director and Hap Royster will be the vice chairman of Cushman & Wakefield. On 13 November 2020, Cushman & Wakefield confirmed the hiring of Chris Cuff as Regional Executive Director of Commercial Leasing based in Singapore.
On July 6, 2022, it was held in contempt of court for failing to comply with subpoenas for documents pertaining to its longtime client, the
Trump Organization.
See also
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CBRE Group
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Colliers International
Colliers is a Canada-based diversified professional services and investment management company with approximately 18,000 employees in more than 400 offices in 63 countries.
The firm provides services to commercial real estate users, owners, inv ...
*
JLL (company)
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Newmark Group
*
Marcus & Millichap
Marcus & Millichap, Inc. is an American company that provides real estate brokerage, mortgage brokerage, research, and advisory services in the U.S. and Canada in the field of commercial property. It popularized the practice of listing propertie ...
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cushman and Wakefield
Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange
Property services companies of the United Kingdom
Real estate services companies of the United States
American companies established in 1917
Real estate companies established in 1917
Real estate companies of Canada
Companies based in Chicago
Companies based in the City of London
1917 establishments in New York City
2018 initial public offerings
Shopping center management firms