Greenhill & Co. relocates and downsizes for cheaper rent

As companies clamor to sublease their locations and negotiate lower rents with their landlords, investment bank Greenhill & Co. managed to get a reduction in a different way: by downsizing its office space.

The firm plans to relocate its headquarters from Tishman Speyer’s 300 Park Avenue to a smaller office in the former Time Inc. building at Rockefeller Group’s 1271 Sixth Avenue, according to Crain’s.

Although it’s unknown how much the firm paid in rent at its Park Avenue location, it negotiated an annual rent of $7.1 million for the new office. It’s taking 78,000 square feet, or $91 per square foot. It was leasing 105,000 square feet in its old space.

“The rent cost of our New York headquarters will be materially lower,” CEO Scott Bok said on a conference call Monday.

The savings are much needed: Greenhill saw a net loss of $9.4 million in the third quarter, down from a $14.9 million profit a year earlier. Revenues fell by 35 percent to $56 million.

The move comes as just 10 percent of Manhattan workers have returned to the office. Some companies, including big tech firms like Facebook and Dropbox, have even made working from home a permanent option.

[Crain’s] — Sasha Jones