Jason Tenenbaum, Senior Vice President & Market Officer for South Florida, Prologis

Invest: spoke with Jason Tenenbaum, senior vice president and market officer for South Florida at logistics real estate company Prologis, about the region’s role as a logistics gateway and the company’s long-term investment strategy. “Across South Florida, developers are already rethinking how land can be used, and that creativity is becoming a competitive advantage,” Tenenbaum said.

What makes Prologis’ scale and global reach valuable for customers operating complex, fast-moving supply chains?

Our scale and global reach are incredibly valuable to what we do and to everything we are building. We are a global company, and we operate in many of the same markets where our customers do business. That makes it much easier to support customers as they grow, enter new markets, or look for more flexibility within their real estate portfolio. In many cases, when our customers move into a market, we are already there. That creates continuity and trust, and it is a big part of our value proposition.

How does Prologis identify and invest in strategic locations that maximize efficiency, connectivity, and proximity to key transportation hubs and population centers?

That is the core of our long-standing investment model. We want our portfolio to be close to the population, in well-located areas, and offer functional product with good access, strong building features, and modern characteristics.

In South Florida, where we are focused on Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach, land is extremely constrained, so we need to be creative in finding those opportunities. Fortunately, we have been building our business in the region for more than 20 years, so we already have a strong presence. We have about 225 buildings totaling 30 million square feet and serve almost 800 customers.

That scale allows us to continue growing in the areas where we already have a foothold while also pursuing new opportunities across the region.

What role does Miami and South Florida play as a gateway to the Americas and as a logistics hub connected to both international and domestic trade flows?

South Florida is different from other logistics markets. If you think about places like Atlanta or major hubs in Texas, they are more centrally located and often support bulk or regional distribution over a much larger geographic area. South Florida is at the tip of the peninsula, so it does not function the same way.

Generally speaking, a warehouse in Miami typically does not serve Atlanta. Instead, our logistics network is primarily serving the local population and local consumption. That includes residents, tourists, cruise passengers, and the broader hospitality ecosystem. All of those people create demand, and our customers establish warehouse operations locally to serve that market.

Miami is also the gateway to the Caribbean and Latin America. A significant share of goods moving between Latin America and the United States passes through Miami, which underscores the region’s strategic importance. Those two forces — local consumption and international trade — are some of the biggest drivers of our business in South Florida.

How do Prologis’ integrated capabilities across development, operations, and capital help customers optimize warehouse and distribution performance?

Real estate is local by nature, so it is important to have the right resources under one roof. At Prologis, when a customer leases space from us, they also gain access to a full Customer Experience team.

That team is local to the market and includes a leasing manager for transactions, a real estate and customer experience manager to support day-to-day operations, a property coordinator, a maintenance technician, and a construction manager. Whether a customer needs help with facility operations, capital improvements, maintenance, or a more customized build-out inside a warehouse, those resources are already in place.

We also have an in-house Capital Deployment team that handles acquisitions and works closely with our Development team. That matters because we are not developing buildings to sell quickly. We are developing them to own for the next 100 years.

That changes how we think about design, quality, and durability. We build with future-proof specifications in mind, including clear height, structure, sustainable solutions, and long-term functionality. Our Development teams know they are handing those buildings off to our Operations teams, so the standard has to be high from the beginning.

How do innovation and technology support better supply chain visibility, fulfillment efficiency, and customer outcomes at Prologis?

A lot of that work is driven through Prologis Ventures, our strategic investment arm, so I cannot speak to every detail. But at a high level, the goal is to drive supply chain innovation by backing disruptive technologies that are aligned with logistics and can create real, long-term value for our customers.

That driving ethos complements Prologis’ culture of innovation. While we have strong processes as a company, we are also empowered at the local level to adapt our business to meet customer needs. If there is a better way to do something, if there is an innovation that improves efficiency, reduces cost, or helps our customers operate more effectively, we are encouraged to pursue it. We feel it’s part of our commitment to customers.

As Prologis continues to grow, how do you balance expansion with operational reliability and long-term value creation?

Those goals go hand in hand. A lot of the companies we engage with – customers and other business partners alike – are also interested in growth. We’re growing alongside each other. Also, there is no arbitrary growth target driving our decisions. We pursue growth opportunities that make sense.

That means being both opportunistic and disciplined. We look for the right buildings in the right locations, and if those assets fit our local portfolio, then we may move forward. In South Florida, we have a strong scale, so our focus is on adding value in the right places. That may mean acquiring or developing new assets, but it may also mean redeveloping older, underperforming properties. Because there is so little land left in Miami, we need to think creatively. Only a few true greenfield sites are remaining, so growth increasingly depends on market expertise and alternative strategies.

We are evaluating opportunities such as repurposing older industrial sites and even considering whether former quarries or borrow pits could be filled and redeveloped. Across South Florida, developers are already rethinking how land can be used, and that creativity is becoming a competitive advantage.

What is your vision for the future of industrial real estate, particularly around building design, sustainability, and strategic priorities?

I don’t think anyone has all of the answers yet because the industry is evolving so quickly. But what is clear is that we are committed to future-proofing our buildings as much as possible.

Sustainability is a part of that. As a company, we intend to be net zero by 2040, and we help our customers meet their sustainability goals. We have to work with them closely, understand their pain points, and understand what they believe their future operations will require.

We are in constant communication with our customers to understand their needs, and that could influence everything from building height to loading design to energy infrastructure. Power demand is also rising significantly, so close coordination with utility providers is becoming more important.

Beyond the building shell itself, we are also focused on what we call our Essentials business. That is about more than just providing four walls and a roof. It is about understanding what happens inside the warehouse and helping customers operate more efficiently. Our conversations today are no longer just about real estate. They are about how we can help customers run better, more efficient businesses.

Are there any other priorities that are especially important to Prologis in South Florida?

Our commitment to the community is a key priority. That is important to me personally, and it is important to our company and to our market. If we intend to own these buildings for the next 100 years, then we need to be active participants in the region’s long-term success. That means giving back, partnering with local institutions, and helping create a stronger business environment.

In South Florida, we are involved with organizations such as the Orange Bowl Committee, FIU, Miami Dade College, and Miami Springs High School. We also have our flagship Community Workforce Initiative, designed to introduce students and future employees to the logistics industry.

That matters because logistics is still not a field many young people are exposed to early on, even though it offers strong career opportunities. By helping raise awareness and build a talent pipeline, we can support the community while also addressing one of the biggest pain points our customers face, which is workforce availability.

That effort becomes another differentiator for us and another part of our value proposition. More importantly, it is the right thing to do. We take a lot of pride in giving back to the community and in making sure our presence in South Florida has a positive long-term impact.