Muscat and Munich, their first two letters aside, don’t have a lot in common at first glance. One is the capital of Oman at the tip of the Arabian peninsula, the other is the Bavarian capital associated with Octoberfest and BMW. However, when looking to take office space in either, businesses are faced with the same challenge: where’s best if there is no obvious central business district (CBD)?

In Munich, like in most German cities, the old town is in the city centre. However, with limited space, it features a mix of residential, retail and offices. So it’s convenient for those who don’t require large office space if such space can be identified.

In the same way, in Muscat, pictured above, where the ‘sweet spot’ for office space is around 200 sq m/ 2,100 sq ft, central areas with easy access to Sultan Qaboos highway as well as the Expressway, are often at the top of the list for new businesses, given their proximity to the established as well as the developing centres of the city. 

Moving back to Munich, with city centre space not only limited but also average office vacancy rates as low as 2.2 per cent, areas such as 'Stadtrand Ost', the eastern outskirts of the Bavarian state capital, have recently become of particular interest. 110,000 sq m (1.18 million sq ft) of office space was taken in Stadtrand Ost between Q3 2018 and Q3 2019, making it the strongest of all Munich submarkets in terms of turnover.

Looking back on the letting performance over the last five years, on average Stadtrand Ost was only in fifth place, which makes the current interest of companies in the location stand out even more. The surrounding areas such as Berg am Laim are also benefitting from the number of large companies increasingly moving to the location.

Likewise, in Muscat, we have seen businesses take up residence in a wide range of locations, including Al-Ghubra, Al Khuwair, Azaiba and Shatti Al Qurum, where each area can appeal for a different set of reasons. In the first two, employees and residents benefit from easy access to Muscat’s key shopping destinations including Muscat Grand Mall and Avenues Mall, as well as good links to both sides of the city.

Similarly, while being largely a residential area, Azaiba appeals to medium-sized as well as some international businesses due to its proximity to Muscat International Airport, as well as Al Mouj.

Finally, despite Muscat’s shift to the west, Shatti Al Qurum has been able to maintain its position thanks to good access as well as proximity to well established prime residential.

So a city without a CBD clearly shouldn’t prevent companies from finding the office space that is right for them. When you take into account the businesses in the vicinity, the infrastructure, and of course, availability and price, there is plenty to choose from.  

Further information

Contact Savills Oman