Key Takeaways
- • Daniel Gorzawski, former head of Europe at Harrison Street, has launched Westwind Capital, a private equity pan-European real estate investment platform.
- • Westwind Capital targets Life Sciences & Innovation and Living sectors, including Purpose Built Student Accommodation (PBSA), Build-to-Rent (BTR) residential, and Micro-Living and Co-Living.
- • The firm plans direct investments through joint ventures with operating partners and developers in the UK, Ireland, France, Spain, and Germany, and will also consider debt and special situations.
- • Westwind plans to embed ESG across investment and asset management and intends to become a UN PRI signatory.
- • Gorzawski previously oversaw construction of a €3 bn portfolio at Harrison Street and spent nine years at AIG Global Real Estate, including as a managing director.
Summary
Daniel Gorzawski, formerly head of Europe at Harrison Street, has launched Westwind Capital, an alternative private equity pan-European real estate investment platform. Gorzawski serves as founding partner and CEO of the firm, drawing on more than 15 years of experience in real estate investment and alternative real estate.
Westwind Capital is targeting the Life Sciences & Innovation and Living sectors. Its Living focus covers Purpose Built Student Accommodation (PBSA), Build-to-Rent (BTR) residential, and Micro-Living and Co-Living. The firm views these asset classes as relatively immature and fragmented markets in Europe, characterised by structural undersupply and supported by demographic growth drivers such as urbanisation and societal change. It sees strong institutional demand for high-quality stabilised assets in these sectors and plans an aggregation strategy to capture operational and capital market efficiencies from building out portfolios.
The firm will target mainly the UK, Ireland, France, Spain, and Germany, focusing on direct investments through joint ventures with operating partners and developers, while also considering debt and special situations. Gorzawski said that the Living sectors are well positioned to provide inflation-hedging qualities due to strong demand-supply imbalances and shorter leases, and that he is confident there is clear investor demand for a new, nimble, expert platform offering access to these asset classes across Europe.
On ESG, Westwind plans to evaluate all potential transactions through a sustainability lens and factor ongoing ESG opportunities into asset-level business plans. The firm intends to become a signatory to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment and to benchmark and report progress across its ESG initiatives.
At Harrison Street, Gorzawski oversaw construction of a €3 bn portfolio including more than 16,000 student beds, 2,600 residential units and over 185,806 m2 of life sciences space across five countries. Before Harrison Street, he spent nine years at AIG Global Real Estate, including as a managing director. Publisher coverage notes he has been involved in $2.5 billion of closed acquisitions, dispositions, loans and related transactions. Separate reports describe the firm as a London-based platform and cite an initial close of approximately €200 million across Westwind European Real Estate Partners, though these figures are not confirmed in the primary source.
Westwind Capital is targeting the Life Sciences & Innovation and Living sectors. Its Living focus covers Purpose Built Student Accommodation (PBSA), Build-to-Rent (BTR) residential, and Micro-Living and Co-Living. The firm views these asset classes as relatively immature and fragmented markets in Europe, characterised by structural undersupply and supported by demographic growth drivers such as urbanisation and societal change. It sees strong institutional demand for high-quality stabilised assets in these sectors and plans an aggregation strategy to capture operational and capital market efficiencies from building out portfolios.
The firm will target mainly the UK, Ireland, France, Spain, and Germany, focusing on direct investments through joint ventures with operating partners and developers, while also considering debt and special situations. Gorzawski said that the Living sectors are well positioned to provide inflation-hedging qualities due to strong demand-supply imbalances and shorter leases, and that he is confident there is clear investor demand for a new, nimble, expert platform offering access to these asset classes across Europe.
On ESG, Westwind plans to evaluate all potential transactions through a sustainability lens and factor ongoing ESG opportunities into asset-level business plans. The firm intends to become a signatory to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment and to benchmark and report progress across its ESG initiatives.
At Harrison Street, Gorzawski oversaw construction of a €3 bn portfolio including more than 16,000 student beds, 2,600 residential units and over 185,806 m2 of life sciences space across five countries. Before Harrison Street, he spent nine years at AIG Global Real Estate, including as a managing director. Publisher coverage notes he has been involved in $2.5 billion of closed acquisitions, dispositions, loans and related transactions. Separate reports describe the firm as a London-based platform and cite an initial close of approximately €200 million across Westwind European Real Estate Partners, though these figures are not confirmed in the primary source.
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