gunnercooke moves into new state of the art premises in Manchester to match global ambitions

Law firm gunnercooke has moved into a new city-centre office in Manchester today to facilitate its growth. The 16,000 sq ft office is located at Pall Mall, part of Bruntwood SciTech’s transformational redevelopment in the heart of King Street.

Designed to accommodate up to 130 people over two floors, the space includes a dedicated client suite, flexible collaboration areas, including multiple meeting rooms and call booths, a TV production studio and a well-equipped event space for clients, partners and support staff to utilise. Other facilities include an innovation room, wellbeing area, multi-faith room, rooftop terrace, gym, bike storage and an on-site cafe.

Aligning with gunnercooke’s sustainability commitments, Pall Mall is a £30 million project transforming a Grade II-listed landmark on King Street into a 120,000 sq ft, net zero carbon innovation hub. The redevelopment is targeting an EPC A rating and BREEAM Very Good rating, representing a major sustainability milestone for a building originally constructed in the 1960s.

Manchester is the birthplace of gunnercooke, which now has 16 offices globally including in the US and DACH region, and the base for its support team, gcTrust, which employs 100 people, alongside 158 lawyers and legal staff across the region.

The firm’s purpose is to “leave the world a better place than we found.” This is why the new headquarters will sit around the corner from gunnercooke’s not-for-profit bookshop, House of Books & Friends, placing it at the heart of the firm’s activity in the city.  The firm and the bookshop work closely with the gunnercooke foundation to tackle social isolation and loneliness in the local community and host events and fundraisers together for a variety of local and national charities.

Founder Darryl Cooke commented: “Manchester is a place close to our hearts, as the birthplace of gunnercooke and the home of our gcTrust team. With the growth we’ve seen in recent years, the time has come for us to invest in our future and move to a larger space to accommodate this growing team. Pall Mall fits the bill, both in terms of its sustainability credentials and for the flexible and unique space it offers for our team. From a TV studio to a rooftop events space, and rooms for wellbeing and innovation, our new office ‘gunnercooke House’ will act as a home for creativity, innovation and community, aiding our goal to become a top global law firm.”

Jack Harrison, Senior Commercial Manager at Bruntwood SciTech, added: “gunnercooke’s decision to establish at Pall Mall is a powerful endorsement of both Manchester and the ambition behind this transformational redevelopment. As a homegrown business with an international footprint, their continued investment in the city reflects the strength of the ecosystem here and the depth of talent that Manchester offers.

“Welcoming gunnercooke to Pall Mall as a flagship occupier is a significant milestone for the building and for King Street, as we continue to invest in spaces that support growth, collaboration and long-term value for the city.”

gunnercooke now has 16 global offices across the UK, US and DACH region, with 600 advisors and lawyers. Last year the firm moved into an upsized Leeds office, opened an additional London office in the West End, and opened up new offices in Frankfurt and Chicago.