RICS UK & Ireland Commercial Property Conference 2025 Delivers a Sold-Out, Sector-Defining Day of Insight and Challenge
The UK & Ireland Commercial Property Conference, held yesterday at RICS HQ in London, brought together over 110 leading real estate professionals for a completely sold-out, content-rich programme exploring the forces reshaping the built environment.
Chaired by Nella Pang MRICS, Managing Director of Omega RE, the conference delivered what she described as “the uncomfortable, the inspiring, the practical and the visionary.”
Delegates engaged with a varied and thought-provoking agenda spanning:
Global market forces and resilience
Urban regeneration, placemaking and genuine social value
New legislative pressures impacting professionals and occupiers
Net zero, sustainability and whole-life carbon thinking
PropTech, AI, and digital transformation
Future skills and the widening talent gap across the sector
Speaking in her opening remarks, Pang highlighted the shifting expectations of occupiers and end users:
“Customer expectations are rising every year. If landlords and developers fail to evolve their real estate, they will inevitably fall behind. Today, we are competing not just locally, but nationally and globally.”
The programme brought together influential voices from across the industry, including Liz Peace CBE, senior leaders from JLL, RICS, CBRE, British Land, government representatives, and innovators in sustainability and PropTech.
Key Themes and Takeaways
AI will become a core professional tool—those who adapt will thrive.
The flight to quality is real: inefficient, poorly performing buildings risk becoming stranded.
Regeneration and “reuse-first” approaches are emerging as both sustainable and commercially effective.
Government investment into defence and life sciences will unlock opportunities in the industrial and logistics sectors.
Retail’s resurgence was strongly backed by panelists imagining a £100m allocation.
Legislative “noise” (e.g., changes to the 1954 Act) will require clarity but is unlikely to derail investor confidence.
The talent pipeline is under strain—more must be done to demystify built environment careers for young people.
Pang concluded the day with a call for agility, collaboration and purpose-driven leadership:
“Commercial real estate is changing fast, and those clinging to ‘how we’ve always done it’ are volunteering for extinction. We cannot afford excuses or procrastination. As an SME and a B Corp, Omega RE has learned to move quickly, and the whole sector must embrace that same energy.”
The conference generated overwhelmingly positive feedback, with delegates praising the diversity of topics, the honesty of discussions, and Pang’s dynamic, engaging chairing throughout the day.of topics, the honesty of discussions, and Pang’s dynamic, engaging chairing throughout the day.
