From Warehouses to Wall Street: The Rise of Industrial Real Estate - Franz Colloredo-Mansfeld - Chairman & CEO of Cabot Properties

Jun 10, 2025

Franz Colloredo-Mansfeld, Chairman and CEO of Cabot Properties and incoming global chair of the Urban Land Institute, shares his unique journey from history and investment banking to leading a logistics powerhouse managing $12 billion in assets. He discusses key moments in Cabot's evolution, including their shift from public to private equity. Franz highlights the growing appeal of logistics real estate and its potential for value creation, while shedding light on global market dynamics and the strategic decisions that spurred the company's success.

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ANECDOTE

Franz's Path to Cabot

Franz Colloredo-Mansfeld grew up in a real estate family but initially pursued history and investment banking.
He joined his father's industrial real estate advisory business in 1996 after his father fell ill, starting a new chapter with Cabot.

INSIGHT

Public vs Private Real Estate Dynamics

Public real estate markets offer scale and efficient capital but come with rigid constraints.
Private equity allows more flexible capital use, long-term value focus, and varied activities like development.

INSIGHT

Industrial Real Estate Opportunity

Logistics properties have unique traits like low capital needs, high yields, and favorable leases.
Institutional ownership was low, giving Cabot the chance to build and sell logical portfolios to grow.

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In this episode of The Distribution, host Brandon Sedloff sits down with Franz Colloredo-Mansfeld, CEO and Chairman of Cabot Properties, for a sweeping conversation on the evolution of the logistics real estate sector. Franz shares his unconventional path into the industry, beginning with a background in history and investment banking, and reflects on the experiences that shaped his leadership at Cabot.

From Cabot’s early days as a small advisory firm to its current position managing $12 billion in assets across 13 offices worldwide, Franz unpacks the strategic decisions, market cycles, and global expansion efforts that defined the company’s growth. He also provides an in-depth look at the structural dynamics of logistics investing, public vs. private ownership models, and why Cabot remains committed to value creation through specialization.

They discuss:

- How Franz’s early exposure to real estate and global finance shaped his leadership style

- Why Cabot went public in the late 1990s and what they learned from it

- The tailwinds driving institutional investment into logistics real estate

- How Cabot has expanded internationally and adapted to global market nuances

- Why logistics is increasingly seen as a core real estate allocation with enduring alpha potential

This is a valuable episode for investors, operators, and professionals curious about logistics real estate, private equity, and global platform building.

Clarification: The number of Cabot offices at the time of publication was 13.

Links:

Cabot Website: https://www.cabotprop.com/

Franz’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/franz-colloredo-mansfeld-71428622a/

Brandon on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/bsedloff/

Juniper Square - https://www.junipersquare.com/

Topics:

(00:00:00) - Intro

(00:01:38) - Franz’s background and career

(00:22:00) - Founding Cabot

(00:24:38) - What were investors missing that gave you confidence in finding Alpha in your sector?

(00:29:05) - The global scale of Cabot in 2025

(00:32:40) - Internationalization

(00:38:30) - The role of logistics in a diversified portfolio

(00:44:24) - Innovation and obsolescence

(00:46:40) - The future of Cabot

(00:50:16) - ULI