Mileway general counsel Nicola Burke thought that she’d wind up in the North West, ideally in her hometown of Liverpool. Her career didn’t pan out that way at all. Then, after more than a decade in private practice at Ashurst and Goodwin Procter, Burke did another thing she never thought she would; she went in-house.
Before taking the job with Tunstall Real Estate, Burke’s only in-house experience was a secondment at Westfield. She was hooked from the beginning. Burke spent two years at Tunstall before moving on to logistics business Mileway in 2019.
Burke was the fourth person through the door when she arrived at Mileway, which now employs more than 500 people. It has seen explosive growth in under four years with its defining moment coming in February 2022 when Blackstone sealed a €21bn recapitalisation of Mileway. It is the largest private real estate transaction in history and a piece of work that required all of Burke’s skills to be pushed to their limits.
It’s expected that 2023 will be a calmer year, one defined more by consolidation and process. After closing that deal, it’s hard to argue that Burke hasn’t earned a quieter 12 months.