Global architecture, planning and design practice – CallisonRTKL – has announced the establishment of an innovative, strategic alliance with architectural practice, Buchan – a firm with eight offices across Australia and New Zealand. Buchan has a 130-year history of delivering award-winning architecture there. The partnership will initially focus on building the already burgeoning Build to Rent market in Australasia.
The alliance between CallisonRTKL and Buchan gives clients access to the best of global insight, local market knowledge and proven Build to Rent experience to deliver a highly sophisticated product for the Australasian market. Having successfully delivered projects together in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia, Buchan and CallisonRTKL are already accustomed to functioning as ‘one studio’ and finding new purpose for capital investment. The combined intelligence and joint synergies of the two firms bring new efficiencies to developers and investors looking to reposition their portfolios to meet evolved market demands and post-Covid realities.
The strategic announcement is a vote of confidence in the sector from CallisonRTKL, which is also exploring cities across Europe – such as Warsaw, Hamburg and Lisbon where demand for Build to Rent is growing. Now in its 75th year, the practice has clear growth ambitions for the future amidst the ever-changing trends around the residential sector and property industry as a whole.
“The growing market for Build to Rent in combination with our strong alliance with Buchan puts us in a prime position to create exceptional projects, with a focus on operational excellence in an authentic service-led residential offering for which demand is set to grow significantly in the coming years.
“While CallisonRTKL isn’t new to the Australasian market, with over 35 plus years there already, our partnership with Buchan ensures we can truly solidify our position across the regions as Build to Rent and mixed-use innovators, utilising our expertise from the more mature US and UK markets.”
John Badman, Principal at CallisonRTKL
CallisonRTKL brings 30 years of knowledge in developing Build to Rent – as many investors in the Australasia market now look to diversify their existing portfolios through repurposing and densifying their existing assets into residential mixed-use offers that create lifestyle-led destinations. The global practice is synonymous with Build to Rent, from the initial growth in the US multifamily market to the boom in the UK over the past 10 years. CallisonRTKL will look to bring its learnings and experience to an Australasian market that is on an upwards trajectory and is keen to bring in established design experience from more mature markets.
