As an operator of sustainable business parks, VGP has an active role to play within communities in which it operates. The Group’s economic success is based on a strong relationship and regular consultations with its stakeholders: tenants, customers, investors, local communities, suppliers and contractors, as well as employees.

Logistics real estate can have a significant positive impact on the surrounding community. VGP’s business strategy is to build, own and operate logistics facilities close to urban centres. This shortens delivery routes, reduces delivery times and reduces related emissions. VGP’s clients and our clients’ customers (both business and residential) benefit from next-day or even same-day delivery of the goods and services they need. Additional benefits include plentiful logistics jobs, shorter commute times for logistics workers, reclamation and remediation of abandoned or brownfield sites and even enhancement of local parks and transportation.

VGP aims to encourage local economic development through close cooperation with the local community, including business interests, as well as activities consistent with the need for sound commercial practice. A recent JPI Urban Europe study called “Cities of Making” identified, among 10 other “needs” for local communities, the “need” for city business parks to offer “a suitable mix of unit sizes for a diverse range of business types in according to the phases of their development”

Our ability to offer smaller working units in our business parks within city limits, albeit at a small scale, will support this effort. The Group has identified several VGP Parks under development as potential locations for such smaller units, amongst other in our parks in Wiesloch, Vélizy and České Budějovice.

Typically VGP engages in the following community actions:

• Several social initiatives were organised in the Group’s parks through the provision of space, collection of materials or donations, and educational events
• The Group donated c. € 0.9 Mio in 2024 and now supports 48 charitable causes through the VGP Foundation on topics such as local community involvement on environmental and social topics
• Based on our understanding of employment generated in our parks as of December 2024 circa 37,000 people go to work under VGP roofs each day (versus c. 30,000 in December 2023)
• The Group Volunteering Program. Examples of community projects: renovation works in a local Habilitation Centre, and tree planting as part of a community reforestation programme.