Broker Spotlight: Lundrim Meshi of Mesh-immo

In this edition of our Broker Spotlight, we’re happy to feature Meshi Lundrim, the founder of Mesh-immo. In this inspiring interview, Meshi discusses his journey in building a successful commercial real estate agency, shares valuable strategies for addressing clients' unique needs, and offers expert perspectives on the evolving Belgian market and the future of flexible workspaces.

Hi Lundrim! Can you tell us a little about yourself and how you got started in the real estate industry?

Hello ! My name is Lundrim. Born in Brussels, I also lived in Flanders and had the opportunity to work in various sectors throughout Belgium during my studies. After graduating as a chartered accountant in business management, I practiced this profession for a few years without any real passion. Looking for a more dynamic field, focused on marketing, human contact and customer satisfaction, I turned to commercial real estate.

After a few years in a real estate agency specializing in commercial real estate in Belgium, where I was active throughout the country, I obtained my IPI certification. Following this experience, I decided to launch my own commercial real estate agency, Mesh-immo.

How do you approach understanding and meeting the unique needs of your clients looking for office, retail, or industrial spaces?

The first thing is to understand my customers' needs. There's no point in bombarding the customer with all the available properties and carrying out countless uninteresting visits, which would be a real waste of time for me and my customer. I usually conduct an interview, by videoconference or on site, to note the customer's specific needs, location, space required, their objectives, the type of rental (recently renovated building, older, etc.) and the budget, which remains one of the key points for a company. You need to be very precise about the rent, the charges and the various related taxes.

For example, for a customer looking for office space, I'll discuss the size needed, the type of configuration and the equipment required. I also advise my customers on the type of rental: traditional, coworking, operated space, etc.

After analyzing my customer's needs, I select the properties that best meet the search criteria. For commercial space, I make sure it has good visibility. For industrial space, infrastructure, accessibility and equipment are essential.

Once the research is complete, I present the solutions to my customer, taking into account the various advantages and disadvantages of each space. I am committed to following up every step of the process, from the visit to the negotiation of the terms of the contract. I continue to follow my customers even after they've signed, to make sure they're fully satisfied.

How has the commercial real estate market in Belgium evolved recently, and what are your predictions for the future?

The commercial real estate market in Belgium is currently evolving very rapidly, with numerous office renovation and redevelopment projects underway in the capital and throughout Belgium. For example, the European Commission has sold over 300,000 m2 of office space. Around 30% of this space will be used for housing, and 70% will be renovated in the European Quarter.

Customers are no longer looking for old-fashioned office spaces; there is a growing need for renovated spaces focused on well-being at work, with different types of services included.

The commercial real estate market is currently fairly quiet, despite three major transactions (Engie, European Commission and Proximus) totalling over 66,000 m2 of office space. The increase in vacant space is levelling off, due to a small increase in new projects.

The gap in rents between a new building and an ecologically obsolete second-hand building continues to widen. Prime rents are €400/m2/year in the Quartier Européen.

What do you enjoy most about your role and the flexible workplace sector?

This job allows me to meet many people in different fields, both nationally and internationally, and to discover places I would never have had access to otherwise. The satisfaction of providing a quality service and contributing, even a little, to the history of their companies is also very gratifying.

What I like about flexible spaces is that they offer an all-in-one package, without the constraints of a long-term contract, and the offices are fully furnished. For fast-growing companies or smaller ones that want to concentrate on their business, this is the ideal solution. Contracts are short term, and the space can be easily adapted to the company's needs.

For larger companies, it can also be an interesting solution if they wish to have a fully operational space quickly.

Can you tell us about a memorable deal or experience from your career?

My first deal was with an American company looking for industrial space near Brussels. We held numerous videoconferences and exchanged e-mails to find the property that best met their needs. After three visits to industrial spaces in Belgium, at their request I produced a monthly and annual estimate of rental costs, salaries in Belgium, and local delivery costs.