Savills Studley Acquires Cresa’s Charlotte and Durham Offices

Savills Studley, the leading global commercial real estate firm specializing in tenant representation, announced today it has acquired the Cresa Carolinas offices located in Durham and Charlotte. The acquisition increases the company’s brand presence in the Research Triangle and Charlotte regions and further demonstrates Savills Studley’s ongoing growth initiative to expand its conflict-free platform across North America.

The newly acquired offices will continue to provide tenant representation, transaction management and project management to companies across all industries, particularly in the high-tech and life science sectors. Mark Ayers, former leader of Cresa Carolinas and Managing Principal of Cresa Carolinas’ Charlotte office, will serve as North and South Carolina’s market leader with direct oversight of Savills Studley’s Charlotte operations; Edwin S. Yarbrough IV, former Managing Principal of Cresa Carolinas’ Raleigh/Durham office, will oversee the operations for Savills Studley’s Raleigh/Durham office alongside Tucker Shade. Both Ayers and Yarbrough have worked exclusively in tenant representation together since 2004.

“This acquisition further demonstrates our dedication to continuing our investment in regional tech hubs across the United States that already include cities like Boston, San Jose, Palo Alto and Austin,” said Michael Colacino, president of Savills Studley. “Mark, Edwin and their talented teams have extensive backgrounds in the tenant rep platform, which makes them perfectly suited to spearhead our growth in this region.”

With over 20 years of corporate real estate experience and more than sixteen years as a solely tenant-focused advisor, Mark Ayers brings value to his clients through lease, purchase, lease/purchase option, disposition, strategic planning and implementation for both national and regional companies. Previously, Ayers served as Managing Director of the Staubach Company’s Charlotte office, where he partnered with clients on local and national levels. Prior to that, he was Vice President with Trammell Crow Company in Charlotte.

Ayers brings with him partners from Cresa Carolinas’ Charlotte office, including Robert McGriff, who led the office’s industrial practice; Amy Johnson, who was instrumental in growing the office’s project management services; and Tom O’Brien, MCR, SIOR who brings over 30 years of commercial real estate experience. Also included is a project management team that has over 25 years of construction management experience, handling every step of the process from the design to construction to move-in, on time and within budget.

“What attracted us to Savills Studley was its solid presence in New York City which will give us the opportunity to have a direct connection between the Carolinas, New York and the rest of the world,” said Ayers. “Additionally, the company’s focus on growth in the technology market sector nationally made it the perfect fit for our marketplace and clients.”

Edwin Yarbrough brings more than 12 years of experience focusing exclusively on representing and providing objective advisory services to corporate occupiers. His practice focuses on corporate office, medical office, industrial, biotech and laboratory requirements where he represents local, regional and national companies with their full range of real estate needs. Yarbrough advises clients with needs related to strategic planning, portfolio management, new leases, expansions, renewals and subleases, as well as acquisitions and dispositions. Prior to opening the Cresa Carolinas’ offices, Yarbrough was a Vice President with The Staubach Company/Jones Lang LaSalle for several years where he concentrated solely on tenant representation.

“We have before us a great opportunity to tap into Savills Studley’s resources and real estate intelligence quotient, as well its global presence in the industry,” said Yarbrough. “On a local level, our team looks forward to aligning ourselves with Savills Studley’s existing Raleigh/Durham office to further strengthen our market expertise and strategic capabilities.”

“Now that the two remaining firms in the region that focus solely on representing tenants have come together, we are uniquely positioned to provide advice that is free of bias and/or conflict to our present and future clients,” said Tucker Shade of Savills Studley’s Raleigh/Durham office.