Cushman & Wakefield's Amanda Eastwick Launches Women In Industrial Network

Women remain underrepresented across commercial real estate — and even more so in industrial, one of the industry’s most male-dominated corners.

Cushman & Wakefield Director Amanda Eastwick thinks it’s time for a change.

This summer, the Nevada-based broker launched Women in Industrial, Logistics and Development, or WILD, a new affinity group aimed at giving women in the sector more access to education and networking.

“We’re trying to create a movement,” Eastwick said. “It’s just creating a platform where we can do better for the younger generations.”

Eastwick has national ambitions, but the group’s first events will roll out in Reno, Nevada, starting with an Oct. 22 soft launch at The Club at Rancharrah and an official kickoff dinner Jan. 15.

WILD enters a market where the numbers are stark. Women make up just 27.5% of C-suites and occupy 32.9% of board seats at the 100 largest CRE firms, according to Bisnow’s 2025 DEI Data Series. A Commercial Real Estate Women Network survey found that less than half of women in the business, 47.9%, work in industrial, compared with 71% in office and 58% in retail.

Eastwick wants WILD to tackle both sides of the gap.

Networking events like Hard Hats & Headshots, scheduled for March 17, are meant to build relationships. But she said education is just as critical. Members, who pay as little as $100 a year will also get access to BuildHER programs — the first, set for May 12, will dive into northern Nevada’s electrical grid and the data centers fueling artificial intelligence growth.

The launch comes as corporate America is scaling back diversity, equity and inclusion commitments under political pressure. Eastwick, however, said that isn't her motivation.

“I don’t think that we’re filling a void,” she said. “This is not checking a corporate initiative box at all.”

Instead, she is betting on industrial’s staying power. The pandemic-era e-commerce surge may have cooled, but the rise of AI-driven data centers has created a new frontier for warehouses and logistics.

“Industrial is the future of business and a strength in our economy,” Eastwick said. “Women are not waiting to be included.”