Over the past few years the word “nearshoring” has moved from strategic buzzword to boardroom imperative. For tenants and investors in the Netherlands and across Europe, nearshoring is the relocation of manufacturing or sourcing closer to end markets is reshaping demand for industrial and logistics property. The driver isn’t just cost: it’s a mix of shifting geopolitics, tighter trade policy, resilience thinking and tenants’ desire to control lead times, regulatory risk and inventory velocity. These forces are now directly influencing where fleets of forklifts hum, which industrial parks get upgraded, and which urban logistics hubs justify premium rents.
Why geopolitics and trade policy matter for real estate
Geopolitical competition, export controls and trade uncertainty are prompting companies to reassess supply-chain geographies. Firms that once relied heavily on long, Asia-centric supply chains are diversifying to reduce exposure to single-country risks, strategic export controls, and political friction, a trend visible across many European sectors. That reconfiguration means more demand for space in countries that can combine good logistics infrastructure, skilled labour and stable regulatory environments attributes the Netherlands retains in spades.
At the EU policy level, proposals around local content and “open strategic autonomy” are intensifying the debate. Initiatives that encourage local production of strategic goods from batteries and semiconductors to critical renewables components change the calculus for tenants and investors: certain types of manufacturing activity are being nudged closer to the market, which in turn raises demand for production-adjacent warehouses, last-mile hubs and multimodal distribution centres. These policy signals matter because they create predictability (and sometimes incentives) for capital to flow into logistics-adjacent industrial development.
Nearshoring’s concrete effects on logistics real estate
What does nearshoring look like on the ground? For property tenants in the Netherlands and Europe, it usually translates into several measurable shifts:
- Greater demand for flexible, modern industrial space. Companies bringing assembly or component production closer to Europe prefer units with higher ceilings, better power capacity, faster permitting and built-for-automation layouts. Older light industrial stock is often unsuitable without extensive retrofitting. This fuels development pipelines for speculative and build-to-suit projects.
- Increased interest in regional distribution hubs. Nearshoring often means that parts and semi-finished goods move more between nearby European locations. That increases the value of strategically sited regional hubs, the ports and inland terminals with excellent road/rail connectivity and puts a premium on locations that can serve multiple markets within a short transit time. The Netherlands’ gateway role (Rotterdam, Amsterdam, strong road/rail links) keeps it central to those flows.
- Rising appeal of multi-user and last-mile logistics. As manufacturers shorten supply chains and place more emphasis on speed-to-customer, demand for last-mile urban logistics, dark stores, micro-fulfilment centres and bonded consolidation nodes rises. Urban permitted land is scarce, and tenants often compete for repurposed light industrial plots or brownfield intensification.
- More sophisticated ESG and energy demands. Nearshoring is not only about geography but also about green transition: tenants increasingly demand solar-ready roofs, electrified truck charging, and energy-efficient HVAC and automation systems. These features can materially increase cap-rates and rental premiums for modern stock.
Market signals in the Netherlands and Europe
Recent market reports show these themes are already influencing leasing and investment patterns. After a period of adjustment, logistics real estate activity across Europe has shown pockets of recovery and renewed leasing interest tied to structural occupier needs, even if macro uncertainty lingers. In the Netherlands specifically, demand and rents for prime logistics assets have been resilient, with tenants focusing on high-quality, well-connected space and investors targeting logistics portfolios. The result is tighter availability in prime corridors and continued appetite from institutional investors for modern assets.
For tenants, the key implication is that location and building specification decisions now carry more strategic weight. Choosing a poor fit (old, low-clearance, limited power) can mean operational constraints and expensive retrofits; choosing the right speculative or pre-let asset can deliver immediate gains in service levels and inventory flexibility.
Financial tools tenants and owners are using
Trade policy and geopolitics often create capital needs: tenants moving to nearshore may need to free up balance sheet cash to pay for new fit-outs or inventory. On the investor side, capital markets are recalibrating risk premia for logistics assets with different durability and ESG exposure. Among the financial tools gaining traction are sale-and-leaseback transactions (which release capital tied up in property while allowing tenants to continue operations), forward acquisitions tied to pre-lets, and joint development programmes that share construction risk. These structures can be especially helpful when an occupier needs speed and certainty to take advantage of new nearshoring opportunities.
Operational strategies for tenants
Tenants considering nearshoring should run three practical audits before moving:
(1) a footprint study to identify where closer production reduces total landed cost and risk
(2) a facilities needs analysis to define technical specs (power, HGV access, ceiling height, ESG requirements)
(3) a financing and capital optimisation review to see whether sale-and-leaseback or partnering on developments makes sense.
These steps reduce the chance of being land-locked with the wrong asset and help align real estate with supply-chain strategy.
What this means for tenants in the Netherlands and Europe
For Dutch tenants, proximity to ports and pan-European corridors remains a competitive advantage. But scarcity of premium land and rising rents mean tenants must act fast and be precise about specifications. Across Europe, secondary markets are also gaining attention as some manufacturers seek lower costs while balancing speed to market. Policymakers’ moves from subsidies for critical industries to localisation rules will continue to influence where tenants locate, and how investors value assets.
Nearshoring and shifting trade policy are not short-lived phenomena; they are persistent forces that reshape where goods are made and stored. For tenants this means the real estate decision is a strategic one linking operations, finance and location strategy. Capital solutions such as sale-and-leaseback, targeted acquisitions and development partnerships allow tenants to unlock balance-sheet value, secure the right modern space quickly, and share development risk enabling firms to move at the speed that supply-chain realignment demands.
RENEW Real Estate (RRE) offers property investment solutions tailored to these dynamics. RRE deploys capital into sale-and-leaseback structures, strategic acquisitions, and logistics and industrial developments. These solutions are designed to help tenants execute nearshoring moves, modernise facilities and stabilise operations while freeing up capital for core business needs
