Shipping Giant Inks Greater Boston’s Largest Industrial Lease In Years
Global shipping company Maersk signed a full-building lease in a small town outside Worcester as the Massachusetts industrial sector continues to improve.
A Maersk shipping container
The Denmark-based firm signed a 617K SF lease at GFI Partners’ 75 Plain St. in Hopedale, according to Cushman & Wakefield, which brokered the deal on behalf of the landlord.
Cushman & Wakefield Senior Research Manager Riley McMullan said in a statement to Bisnow that the deal is the largest new industrial lease in Greater Boston since 2020 and signals “renewed confidence among larger occupiers.”
Brian Pinch, a vice chair of industrial and logistics at Cushman & Wakefield who was involved in GFI’s project, said the deal “reinforces the improving momentum in the industrial market.”
“We’re seeing a resurgence of big-box leasing activity as national and global occupiers continue investing in strategic locations throughout the Greater Boston Market,” he said in a statement.
GFI Partners built the distribution center speculatively after acquiring the 141-acre parcel for $15M in 2023 from a subsidiary of Boston Sand and Gravel.
GFI secured approval for the project in May 2023 from the Hopedale Planning Board, and the developer said the project would bring more than 300 jobs and $1M in tax revenue to the town.
Maersk has posted several job openings in Hopedale in recent months. Neither the tenant nor GFI responded to Bisnow’s request for comment on the lease.
The shipping giant has been ramping up its logistics footprint over the past year.
In February, Maersk opened a 165K SF facility in Fontana, California, Supply Chain Dive reported. The facility adds to its logistics network of more than 65 ground freight facilities across North America.
The firm also opened a 1.1M SF distribution center in Singapore, more than doubling its footprint in the country, Maersk announced in March.
Its new Massachusetts location in the 6,000-person town of Hopedale in Worcester County sits about 40 miles west of Boston.
Greater Boston’s industrial sector posted a strong second quarter in 2026, with leasing activity totaling 2M SF, the second-highest quarter for demand in nearly four years, according to Cushman & Wakefield.
The region’s industrial leasing volume more than doubled in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period last year, the firm found. Ten of the new leases signed were for 100K SF or more, surpassing the eight signed in the same period last year.
“Demand is increasingly shifting toward new leasing activity after an extended period in which renewals dominated the market,” McMullan said in a statement to Bisnow.
“At the same time, the slowdown in new industrial construction has allowed demand to catch up with supply, and larger occupiers have returned to the market, specifically targeting newly delivered facilities that better meet today’s operational requirements.”
Jon Banister contributed to this story.
