The REX Effect: How Hines Transformed Salesforce Tower Chicago Into the New Standard for Trophy Office
How Hines achieved 97% occupancy and $888M valuation by building Chicago's first zero-carbon office tower as an experience platform, not just a building
Vision
When Hines won the development rights for Wolf Point in 2016, they weren't just building another trophy tower. They were testing a thesis: that Chicago's next generation of premium office would be defined not by height or marble lobbies, but by systematic sustainability and intelligent infrastructure that tenants couldn't replicate anywhere else.
The result was the Salesforce Tower Chicago: the first zero-carbon certified office skyscraper in the city. But the real story isn't the certification. It's how Hines architected every system, space, and service to close the gap between what tenants expect from trophy assets and what most buildings actually deliver.
This is what separates experience-led portfolios from traditional landlords. When you design buildings around how tenants work, not just where they sit, you create destinations that command positioning competitors can't match.
Wolf Point sits at the confluence of the Chicago River's three branches. Prime location. Iconic views. But Hines understood that location alone doesn't win enterprise tenants in 2024. Salesforce wasn't looking for another address. They were looking for infrastructure that could support their growth trajectory, attract top talent, and align with their sustainability commitments.
The market in 2018 gave Hines three options: build another glass box competing on rent per square foot, chase the amenity arms race with rooftop bars and nap pods, or architect a building where every system works as competitive infrastructure.
Hines chose intelligence over theater. The 60-story, 1.2M sqft tower opened in May 2024 at 97% occupancy, anchored by Salesforce's 500,000 sqft headquarters on a 17-year, $475M lease signed before the building topped out. That's not luck. That's systematic experience delivery validated by the market before the doors opened.
Market & Ideal Tenants
Salesforce Tower's tenant roster reveals the building's positioning: enterprise tech companies, professional services firms, and financial institutions competing for talent. Law firm Kirkland & Ellis leases 677,821 sqft through 2043, while Salesforce occupies 477,100 sqft through 2040.
These tenants need buildings that help them win the war for talent. That means workplaces that justify the commute through experience quality their people can't get at home. They need infrastructure that supports hybrid work: seamless connectivity, flexible collaboration spaces, and amenities that make the office the preferred place to work. They need sustainability credentials that align with ESG commitments. And they need landlords who think like operators, not just owners.
Closing the Experience Gap
Here's how Hines approached Wolf Point differently:
| Physical Spaces | High-end finishes, standard amenity floor, minimal outdoor space | 24,000 SF per floor of flexible layouts; club-quality fitness, versatile conference center, riverfront lounges; 25,000 SF retail with curated F&B; integrated 2.5-acre park and 1,000-foot riverwalk |
| Service Delivery | Reactive property management, basic concierge | Here by Hines tenant app for fitness, wellness, and work orders; hospitality-trained teams; The SQ Collection membership for global Hines portfolio access |
| Building Systems | Standard management, basic access control | LEED Gold core, LEED Platinum interiors; 19% carbon reduction (7M kg CO2 saved annually); first zero-carbon certified Chicago office tower; predictive maintenance; enterprise-grade digital infrastructure |
The Experience Payoff
Occupancy & Tenants: 95.2% leased as of March 2025, significantly outperforming Chicago's downtown office market. Salesforce and Kirkland & Ellis hold long-term leases through 2040 and 2043, respectively.
Sustainability Leadership:
- LEED Gold core/exterior, LEED Platinum interiors
- First office tower achieving 19% carbon emissions reduction
- 7M kg CO2 saved annually
- First zero-carbon certified office skyscraper in Chicago
- Developed using Hines' Embodied Carbon Reduction Guide, now an industry standard
Financial Performance: Current valuation of $745M, projected to reach $888M; secured $610M refinancing in March 2025 at 6.525% interest rate.
Development Context: Construction loan secured April 2020, three weeks into the pandemic; opened May 2023
Recognition: 2024 American Architecture Prize winner
Voices of the Experience
"We continue to see intense demand for best-in-class office space along the Chicago River, and we believe that Salesforce Tower Chicago is well-positioned to satisfy this demand."
– Will Renner, Director, Hines
"The gutsiest thing I've ever heard of in business, to commit $750 million to build that building in the middle of a recession caused by the pandemic."
– Chris Kennedy, Wolf Point Owners LLC, describing the decision to move forward with construction in April 2020.
Experience Lessons Learned
Sustainability credentials are tenant acquisition tools. Hines didn't pursue LEED Platinum and zero-carbon certification for awards. They recognized that enterprise tenants increasingly evaluate buildings based on environmental performance. The 19% reduction in embodied carbon was achieved by following Hines' guide, which the firm now shares freely with the industry. Buildings that provide the ESG data that tenants need for their own reporting create switching costs competitors can't match.
Anchor tenants commit when you deliver certainty. Salesforce signed in November 2018, before construction began, because Hines provided detailed sustainability targets, amenity programming plans, and service-level commitments backed by their track record. They weren't buying a rendering. They were buying systematic experience delivery.
Trophy buildings require hospitality operations. Hines staffed the building with hospitality-oriented teams who use the Here by Hines app to deliver fitness programming, food services, wellness offerings, and seamless work order management. Experience is earned daily, not delivered at lease signing.
Conviction during uncertainty creates advantage. Securing a $500M+ construction loan and breaking ground in April 2020, three weeks into the pandemic, required strong partnerships. The result: a building worth $888M that commands premium rents while peers struggle with obsolescence.
Salesforce Tower Chicago represents a broader evolution in how leading portfolios approach asset development and management. The flight to quality isn't just about newer buildings. It's about buildings where spaces, services, and systems align with how tenants actually work and what they really value.
Properties that compete on rent per square foot are at risk of commoditization. Properties that compete on experience quality create switching costs that justify premium positioning. Hines understood this thesis and executed it systematically.
The question for the rest of the market: Will you architect experience as infrastructure, or keep treating it as an amenity add-on?
Ready to Close Your Experience Gap?
The Real Estate Experience (REX) methodology provides frameworks for transforming portfolios through systematic experience delivery. Developed by HqO based on analysis of leading experiential organizations like Hines, REX helps asset managers architect spaces, services, and systems that close the gap between tenant expectations and building delivery.
Explore the REX Hub for framework and templates, including Ideal Tenant Profiles, tenant journey mapping, and experience delivery playbooks.
Request a Demo to see how the HqO platform helps portfolios systematize experience delivery at scale.