Andrew Runnette shares insights from a Thesis Driven piece by Paul Stanton: "GP Studios" made up of ex-Blackstone and Starwood execs are backing niche operators with co-GP capital targeting 4 to 10x returns, with cowarehousing making the list.

The shift means the operating company itself is now the investment, not just the building. But the weak spot for operators is missing back-office infrastructure like SOPs and reporting systems, so building that layer now is key to winning capital.

A look at some of the numbers from OurHouse, which I introduced to many of you recently when they got backed by Blackstone. During 2025, across 2 Houses, members booked 37,800 hours of kids’ classes, 55,000 hours of adult fitness classes and 98,000 hours of childcare in 2025 from Jan to Dec.

While Charlie Gardiner doesn’t explicitly share how many coworking hours were booked in 2025, his observation that their value comes from "a mix of things happening under one roof and the flexibility that gives families" rings true to what we’re seeing with mixed use and childcare projects.

The Times covers how Blackstone are investing £100M into OurHouse, which runs members’ club for families in London.

Founded by Charlie Gardiner in 2022 to create an alternative to pricey playdates and freezing playgrounds, they’re now expanding across London, with new Houses in East Sheen, Clapham and Chiswick.

James Seppala, head of European real estate at Blackstone, told the Times: “We got so excited by the business because it offers this incredible and relatively affordable combination of things that everyone wants — gyms, fitness classes, co-working (sic) spaces, food and beverage, childcare facilities.”

Alex Vouvalides shares that Perform Properties is the new name and brand representing the merged assets of ShopCore, ROIC, and EQ Office with a combined portfolio of over 33M sqft across the U.S. The company focuses on "People-Appeal," creating dynamic environments where people choose to work, shop, and gather.

As a Blackstone Real Estate portfolio company, Perform Properties leverages deep market expertise with national reach and local insight to develop spaces that thrive in a world of choices. The brand aims to deliver high-performing environments that create lasting value for tenants, customers, partners, and communities.

Indian based OYO makes a big play into the USA market by purchasing the Motel 6 brand from Blackstone real estate. With over 157,000 hotels in 32 markets, OYO is a major hotel player in almost every market except for North America. By purchasing Motel 6, they now have a sizeable network to compete with.

ICYMI: OYO has a Workspaces brand that they have been slowing growing out of just being a third party aggregator to include and offer workspace at their hotel locations.