It’s not about building more, it’s about using what we have better

The property sector has a remarkable blind spot.

We talk about scarcity. We talk about land prices. Construction costs. About densification.

But we rarely talk about utilisation. Yet the average office building stands empty for most of the week.

Mare Santema noticed this early on. She saw it not as a social statement, but as inefficiency.

As a child, she wanted to become an architect. While others played games, she built houses in SketchUp. Buildings fascinated her. However, during her architecture studies, her focus shifted from form to function.

The question is not how to design a building. But when does a building really work?

After completing her Master's degree in Management in the Built Environment and working for Deloitte Real Estate, she realised that the real estate industry is driven by square footage, returns and contracts.

She was struck by the fact that a lot is invested in creating value, but hardly anything in activating it.

“A building can be technically perfect,” she says, “but if it is not used properly, value remains untapped.”

This became apparent during the Coronavirus pandemic. Offices were designed for a world in which everyone was present five days a week. That world changed, but the buildings did not.

And therein lies the question.

The idea did not originate from an ideal, but from a strategic observation: single-purpose real estate is vulnerable.

An office that only functions between nine and five is not utilising its full potential. Not financially. Nor positionally.

This is why Mare introduced a dual-use approach. There is no change of function or repurposing. The building remains an office. However, the same square metres are put to a second use.

For example, a meeting room is used for tutoring in the evenings. A canteen that is open to artists. The lobby offers space for programming that fits the building's profile. Tenants can realise their social ambitions within their own building.

Not as charity. As a strategy.

After all, a building that is used more often is more visible, livelier and more attractive. This strengthens its position in tenders, increases tenant loyalty, and makes ESG a tangible reality rather than just an exercise on paper.

‘It's not about feeling good,’ says Mare. ‘It's about relevance.’

Many office owners are grappling with the same question: how can my building remain distinctive in a market where supply is increasing and occupancy is declining?

Design alone is no longer enough. Neither is location.

A building is no longer distinguished solely by what it is, but by what it does.

The use of space helps to create an ecosystem around a building that reflects its identity. This is not done randomly, but is tailored to the context, the tenants and the neighbourhood.

This creates dynamism, and dynamism creates attractiveness.

However, the real added value arises when developers consider dual use from the outset of the project.

When flexibility and shared use are incorporated from the tender or design phase onwards, activation becomes part of the concept rather than an afterthought. This strengthens dialogue with the local authority, creates tangible social value and prevents costly adjustments during implementation.

Dual use is not an add-on. It is a design choice and therefore a strategic choice.

What is clear is that the sector has long been focused on expansion. Build more, add more.

However, in an era of hybrid working and changing usage, optimisation is at least as important as expansion.

'There is already an enormous amount,' she says. ‘The question is not only what we build, but also how we utilise what already exists.’

Mare does not view real estate as a static asset, but as infrastructure.

A building that is only rented out serves one purpose. A building that is activated can serve multiple purposes.

That is not a soft story. It is strategic thinking about use.

It’s not about building more, it’s about using what we have better