What exactly makes London such a magnetic location for businesses of all sizes, and why should you consider renting a coworking, traditional, or serviced office in the capital of the UK?
Office space London
London, a city of entrepreneurial potential and vast talent pool, teeming with innovation and business opportunities. Despite changes connected to Brexit and challenges brought by Covid-19, Britain’s capital remains attractive as ever for startups and established firms alike.
Ranked 2nd just after Silicone Valley in California, London (together with New York) holds a strong position as the world’s best city for startups, noted by Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2021. A 2021 report by TechNation shows that in the global perspective, London is fourth for tech Venture Capital investments, placing behind San Francisco, Beijing, and New York at $10.6 billion worth of funding for startups and growth companies.
Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, noted that the city is “Europe’s leading tech hub […] helping to create even more jobs and investment for the capital and the wider UK economy.”
3 out of 4 UK unicorn companies (startups with a valuation exceeding $1 billion) are based in London, which is more than anywhere else in Europe. What’s more, Dealroom – a global provider of data and intelligence on startups and tech ecosystems – claims it has identified a further 81 potential future startup unicorns headquartered in London.
Home to some of the UK’s biggest firms such as HSBC, Barclays, Unilever, Starling Bank, and startups like Hopin or Revolute (UK’s biggest fintech firm), London is an excellent location for your office!
Find the right place for your business:
2020 The Global Power Index by The Mori Memorial Foundation shows that London managed to maintain its first-place position on the index for the 9th consecutive year. The city was named as the most “magnetic” city, attracting people, capital, and enterprises from around the world.
London and the South East accounts for 35% of the UK business population. The city itself, which stretches across 1,583 square kilometres, offers a wide choice of office localizations across its 32 districts. London boasts a rich coworking and serviced office landscape, so much so that no one will be stuck for choice.
Basing the location of your office around the city’s transport network, key airports, or main business hubs is the best approach to take. It’s also important to keep in mind the localization of your clientele and price range which varies from district to district.
Ready to start searching? Here you will find a guide through the 5 main areas of London and what each one can offer for your business.
Hire from a broad and highly skilled talent pool:
Locating your office in UK’s largest metropolis means you will be based in the epicentre of growth and highly skilled talent pool as London has the largest concentration of higher education institutes in Europe. In 2021, RUR World University Rankings showed that 13 of the World’s top Universities are located in the UK, while 4 in and around London – giving a wide pool of talent, especially in the field of Tech and Life Sciences.
Choose the right renting agreement
The lease agreement you settle for should make you feel secure and not tied down.
With the rise of flexible office solutions, companies are no longer forced to commit to 10 -15 year office leases. Shorter, more flexible contracts are becoming popular and are proving to be extremely beneficial for startups and small firms who are still finding their place in the market.
If you are a freelancer or a company that is looking for an innovative and collaborative environment, consider opting for a co-working space. Working alongside other creatives creates many opportunities for establishing useful contacts, networks and getting inspired while also having access to additional meeting and conference rooms.
We suggest renting offices with flexible leases and growing your workspace as you go. Read about various office setups like Serviced office, Hub and Spoke, and other work models to decide what best works for you.
Here is some helpful insight to help you calculate how much space per employee you need when looking for an office.
To get the best deal and avoid costly mistakes, read our 6 tips on how to save money renting your next office.
Let the building reflect who you are:
The right office can enhance, propel and make your business stand out; it should also reflect your company’s identity and values. For proof of just how much your workspace can impact your team, read about Pixar’s story.
Too often, we limit our office space to a basic structure of desks and computers. Looking at examples like “The Brain Embassy” in Warsaw, we can see a space that breaks those boundaries and elevate their creativity when it comes to the way companies can work.
In their own words, the Brain Embassy describes its workspaces as “the office of the future, setting global trends addressed to small and medium entrepreneurs, startups, freelancers, as well as global corporations. The creative concept invites its users to work and relax on their own terms, providing rooms for rest as well as spaces adapted to the given work style”.
Whether you are passionate about sustainable solutions, prefer historical architecture, or futuristic interior design, London has something for everyone. From technologically oriented venues to experiential offices with creative spaces offering podcast and recording studios, open cafeterias, gyms, showers, and more, don’t hesitate to expect creative solutions from the place you will settle for.
Learn from others
Learning from experience is the best form of learning. Read about how other businesses found their perfect office with ShareSpace and what benefits their new space brought to them:
-Huawei’s Telecommunications and IT research team found an office that answered their needs
-Investment Management Stability Capital found a prestigious office in Warsaw’s city centre
-FinTech company SMEO found a hybrid rotation-model office in just one month
-Just WiFi, an IT company found a space for their 15-20 team in a coworking space built into the historic interiors of one of the most prestigious hotels in Warsaw.
-ASTEK Polska, who works on top global ICT solutions, found an office that exceeded their expectation
Currently entering the London market, ShareSpace is an online platform that matches professionals with office space providers: from coworking spaces, serviced offices to traditional offices. The innovative platform streamlines and digitalizes the office search journey into an intuitive 5 step process reducing the complexity and cost of a traditional leasing process.
Contact our advisors or try our powerful search engine for yourself to find your next office with ShareSpace.
