The outdated view of “Industrial” vs the reality: ugly, noisy buildings or sources of support for growing populations?

Dark Satanic Mills. Think of the word ‘Industrial’, and your mind may conjure up images of heavy industry, of noisy factories and billowing smokestacks.  The outdated Victorian view captured in William Blake’s poem Jerusalem.

That Victorian image is no longer representative. The term ‘Industrial’ in a real estate context is now predominantly service industry or distribution related, rather than heavy manufacturing. The spaces industrial tenants occupy are mostly clean, modern, sometimes hi-tech and increasingly use renewable fuels, such as solar.

As one industrial land agent puts it in a recent industrial land commission report:

“There’s a misconception about who industrial occupiers are… there seems to be a lack of understanding that everything basically comes from industrial uses and operations in some way or form – from heating, repair, the clothes we wear, the foot we eat.”

Industrial units aren’t crammed with heavy, smelly machinery contributing to pollution. At Preston & Preston Capital our spaces are used for brewing or bespoke joinery. For online grocery or concert lighting. For disaster recovery or fire safety. For online retail or your new double glazing; and these are the roles of just a few of our tenants!

They are great neighbours and can operate and serve at the heart of our communities. 

In the north of England, where I grew up, the Victorians built towns and cities around their factories or mills. People walked to work, could go home for lunch, and the factory was at the core of their community.

Warehouses and sheds might not be everyone’s aesthetic, but industrial is vital to support growing populations AND provide communities with employment and important services.

Where industrial space can be sited close to residential areas, delivery miles can be reduced, more electric vehicles used, and more local employment created.  We need land for jobs, as well as housing.


Formed in 2016, Preston & Preston Capital is a British property investment firm focused on long term ownership, leasing and active management of mixed-use, commercial and light industrial properties. We are constantly seeking new assets to develop and add to our growing high-yield portfolio.

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