The Unconventional Office

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Why some tenants are leasing office space in shopping malls

Across Canada, a growing number of forward-thinking organizations are quietly doing office deals inside shopping malls and unlocking surprising advantages in cost, talent, and visibility.

From retail-to-office conversions in Ontario to adaptive reuse of former department stores, unconventional office space is becoming a mainstream strategy.

What’s inside?

The Opportunity in "Value" Space

Former cinemas, basements, and back-of-house zones. The best unconventional office space in Canada is hiding in plain sight inside regional malls.

Cost Benefits: TMIs, Operating Costs & Fit-Out

How leasing office space in a shopping mall often delivers significantly lower occupancy costs than comparable traditional buildings in Ontario.

Employee Experience & Amenity Richness

Food, fitness, pharmacy, and entertainment—the amenity-rich environment of mall office space that are all within a short walk.

Impact on Satisfaction, Engagement & Retention

The quantifiable link between transit-accessible office locations, daily experience, and retention and why it favours mall-based offices.

ENCOR Advisors specializes in strategic commercial real estate advisory for growing enterprises seeking operational efficiency, competitive advantage, and alignment with evolving market opportunities.

From traditional towers and business parks to unconventional environments like malls and adaptive reuse projects, ENCOR helps organizations make location decisions that serve their people, brand, and long-term objectives.

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About the author

Hey there 👋 I'm Mark Petznick, an Executive Vice President and a Founding Partner at ENCOR Advisors. My focus is creating strategies to reduce risk and occupancy costs within leases while creating flexibility. With 23 years of global corporate real estate (CRE) experience, I strictly advocate for office and industrial tenants. If there is anything ENCOR can help with, please reach out to me at 👉 mpetznick@encoradvisors.com 👈 or feel free to connect on LinkedIn.