Local distributor inks lease in development
By DAILY PRESS STAFF
OLYMPIC BLVD The early bird catches the worm, or in this case prime office space.
Genius Products, Inc. the Santa Monica-based company that has become a leader in home entertainment distribution, just signed a 10-year lease to occupy over 40,000 square feet at the Lantana Entertainment Media Complex on Olympic Boulevard.
Genius will be the first tenant to occupy the Lantana South addition, which was designated by the city of Santa Monica specifically for media and entertainment uses. The addition is still under construction, with a completion date slated for July 2008.
Trevor Belden, a principal in the Sherman Oaks office of Lee & Associates, represented Genius Products in the deal for a full floor in the newest addition to the 12-acre Lantana campus.
“We needed to find a space that would accommodate our client’s recent growth and desire to remain in a creative environment in Santa Monica,” Belden said. “This deal puts all of Genius’s operations under one roof in a brand new building specifically designed for companies like theirs.”
Genius Products, which is partially owned by The Weinstein Company Holdings LLC, has been occupying about 17,000 square feet of office space elsewhere in Santa Monica and another 10,000 square feet of temporary space in another building on the Lantana campus.
Belden would not disclose the terms of the lease. Representatives from Maguire Properties, the owner of Lantana, could not be reached for comment.
Santa Monica is home to one of the most expensive commercial real estate markets in the county with rents hovering around $4 per-square-foot. Despite the cost, companies are still attracted to Santa Monica because of Brandon Wise COMING SOON: Genius Products, Inc. the Santa Monica-based company that has become a leader in home entertainment distribution, just signed a 10-year lease to occupy part of the Lantana Entertainment Media Complex on Olympic Boulevard, which is under construction. Lantana South project should open in summer its location, amenities and skilled labor pool, Belden said.
“The market is still really strong, especially for large blocks of space,” Belden said. “ There are few locations where you can get 30,000 to 40,000 square feet so this was a location we really couldn’t resist and one we looked at strongly.”
Genius Products is a leading independent home-entertainment distribution company that produces, licenses and distributes a library of motion pictures, television pro-gramming, sports, family/faith, lifestyle and independent film on DVD and other emerging platforms through its expansive network of retailers throughout the U.S.
Genius Products handles the distribution, marketing, and sales for various brands, including The Weinstein Company; Dimension Films; IFC; Asia Extreme; Imaginasian; Laugh Factory; ESPN; World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc.; Animal Planet; Sesame Workshop; Discovery Kids; and Impact Entertainment. In addition, Genius Products distributes a line of musical compact discs under various brand names in three categories: Classical, instrumental, and vocal.
The Lantana campus is comprised of three low-rise office and studio production office buildings totaling 331,926 square feet. Current tenants include Revolution Studios, IMAX and Todd-AO studios.
The campus features private patios, extensive open spaces and attractive amenities. The property was purchased in December 2007 by Maguire Properties from Hines U.S. Office Development Fund for $138 million.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 16, 2008. Read the original PDF.