Colliers in the News: Albuquerque defense company secures new office space, plans to expand workforce

Raven Defense Corp., a homegrown company, has signed a 10-year lease and has plans for a new 25,000-square-foot office off Interstate 25 at 4411 The 25 Way NE.

Launched in 2018 by four employees who worked for Raytheon, today, Raven Defense has 17 employees and plans to add more soon.

President and CEO Chris Patscheck said he needs to more than double his team in the next several months. The firm had been awarded several contracts and in negotiation for several more, thus the need for more employees. Some of Raven Defense's work is hypersonic testing and development for the Department of Defense, Patscheck said.

Its first day in the office was Nov. 1.

"It's going to be research development and manufacturing and it'll just enable us to meet our contractual obligations," Patscheck said. "We've been at this months looking for a facility and commercial real estate market for mixed-industrial has just been absolutely challenging and terrible. ... It took a lot of time and effort but we finally got it across the goal line."

The landlord for the space at 4411 The 25 Way NE was represented by Colliers International's Shona Martinez and Scott Whitefield.

Patscheck and Raven Defense were represented by Albuquerque broker Gannon Coffman in the deal. Coffman said over his time representing Raven Defense, there were two occasions where it finished as the "bridesmaid — not the bride" for a space.

Coffman said his relationship with Raven Defense CTO and co-director Michael Robson goes back to their high school days when both played for La Cueva High School's football team. Coffman said Robson approached him looking for a new space and began the process.

Patscheck added that it will keep its first office at 4239 Balloon Fiesta Road NE. It also has a 4-acre test site across the street from its new facility. In the long-term, Patscheck said the company will look to consolidate more into 4411 The 25 Way NE.

Its current total footprint encompasses about 36,000 square feet.

Colliers International ranked No. 2 on Business First's List of New Mexico Commercial Real Estate Firms after reporting $261.99 million in commercial transaction volume in 2020.

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Shona Martinez

Senior Associate Broker

Albuquerque

Call now +1 505 880 7021

Call Mobile +1505 492 9405

Having grown up in the West of Ireland, I moved to Dublin to study History of Art and Italian Studies at University College Dublin after finishing high school. In 2009 I moved to London, where I pursued a career in real estate. I started out working for the UK’s largest residential landlord before moving to a boutique commercial property brokerage. I developed a deep understanding of the commercial real estate market in the UK. After a few years, I moved away from real estate to try my hand in the world of finance. I worked in branding and marketing as well as project management within the global IT department at the head office of a worldwide financial company dealing in investments, insurance, pensions and private wealth.

In 2016, having just had a baby and moving to Albuquerque, New Mexico, I was inspired to return to work in the commercial real estate world. In early 2017, I took a job with Colliers International, New Mexico. Later that year, I completed my real estate licensing course with Kaplan and began working as a broker full time as of January 2018. I pride myself on my strong organization skills, problem solving and building respectful relationships with colleagues, clients and vendors. It is important for me to keep up to date on what is happening in the New Mexican market so I attend regular CARNM meetings where I network with other Commercial Real Estate professionals and leads meetings where I connect with vendors and maintain a strong relationship with them which, in turn, helps my clients with their business needs. I am also a member of the local chapter of CREW Network which is a networking association specifically supporting women in Commercial Real Estate.

I work tirelessly for my clients by doing a deep dive into their business requirements, needs and motivation and collaborating with them to come up with solutions. I aim to make all of my clients feel as comfortable as possible. I enjoy negotiating terms and getting the best deals for my clients, ensuring a smooth transaction along the way and all the while maintaining a high ethical standard. I have worked in a broad range of transactions with both national and local businesses and use multiple platforms to reach prospects.

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Scott Whitefield

Managing Director

Albuquerque

Call now +1 505 880 7055

Call Mobile +1 505 803 8104

Scott Whitefield has more than 28 years of experience in commercial real estate, with extensive experience in portfolio management and Site Selection. He has successfully completed over two and a half million square feet of lease transactions, and represents some of Albuquerque’s most prestigious properties. He has also completed transactions with clients in 37 cities across 18 States and Canada. His experience includes advanced analytics in site selection, property operations, detailed market research, tenant improvements, tenant retention, marketing, lease negotiations and building sales.

Scott has been a top 5 performer for 4 of the past 5 years since coming to Colliers and now has expanded his team with the inclusion of Shona Martinez. Scott and Shona have been involved in many of the largest real estate transactions in the greater Albuquerque Area.

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