Renting commercial property in London – things to consider

There are many reasons why a business might consider renting or letting a piece of commercial property in London. For a start, London is a major world centre for businesses; many businesses conscientiously take the decision, or at least consider, making the move to make the most of the business opportunities that a location in the city can present. Although already well-established as a hub, in which thousands of important business meetings take place each day, London continues to burgeon.

If you’re renting or letting commercial property in London for the first time, there are a number of things that should be taken into consideration.

The most important thing to consider, when searching for commercial property in London, is location. Understandably, as England’s capital city, London is vast in size.  So, therefore, as a business owner, you’d need to consider exactly where in the city you’d want your new piece of commercial property to be situated.
Determining this can be quite difficult. However, it should be remembered that certain areas are hubs for certain industries. For example, the east London Tech City, situated by the Old Street roundabout, is, as its name suggests, a rapidly developing centre of technology. Meanwhile, Canary Wharf and the Bank area of the City of London are widely associated with financial firms; Soho is an area dominated by firms from the British media industry and so on.

To make the most of a move to the city, it can help if you rent a piece of commercial property in London in an area thriving with businesses from a similar industry.

Secondly, it’s important when searching that you set out a clear budget. There’s absolutely no point in searching for a property that isn’t within your price range; essentially you’re wasting your time.

Be realistic with your budget; allow some leeway, but not to the point where it becomes a completely non-viable option.

You may have a dream piece of commercial property in London in mind; but with this it’s also important to make sure that you don’t build your expectations too high. Whilst the majority of companies would love to occupy a Renzo Piano-designed masterpiece – one exuding masses of quality through every nuanced feature – it sometimes just isn’t a possibility, and that’s not just down to budget either.

Availability is a major factor with commercial property in London; the property market is incredibly competitive. Businesses all over the world want commercial property there, so it’s important to ensure that you have a couple of realistic back-up options, because, as Mick Jagger once sang: you can’t always get what you want.

It’s also vital, for the sake of your budget, that you carefully consider the amount of space your business is likely to require. If you jump right in and opt for a piece of commercial property that’s far too big for your business, you’ll be wasting valuable cash; opt for a building that’s too small and you’ll have practicality issues. There’s a fine line to be trodden when looking for commercial property in London.

Redefining the workplace – fun office space in London

Regardless of where they are in the world, everyday millions of people make the commute to an office of some kind. Whether spectacularly shaped, like the Gherkin – or as its more formally known 30 St Mary Axe – or a little more traditional in architectural style, most of them boast the same features, albeit with variances in size and amounts: receptions, open-plan office spaces, meeting rooms, storage areas, cafeterias etc. However, one criticism that employees will often level, at the office they spend so much of their days working in, is that interiorly it’s actually rather dull – sticking to uniformity rather than existing to invigorate inspiration amongst employees.

As England’s capital city, as well as a business hub for many massive sectors, there is a significant amount of rather quirky and very cool office space in London. Unsurprisingly, much of this office space is owned by some of the world’s most forward-thinking establishments. The features, ranging from abstractly-shaped glowing staircases to open-plan office space more akin to a robotics research facility pulled straight from a science-fiction blockbuster, make the buildings they enhance feel far removed from a lot of the office space in London.

Detailed below are just three of the most fun pieces of office space in London:

Nike - Oxford Street HQ: American sportswear giant Nike’s London office space features a large amount of curved lines and glass usage. Although uniformly consistent in its use of colour – sky blue and white – the office has match balls adorning its walls and wall-size images of sporting legends, such as Brazilian footballer Ronaldo. Not your everyday office space in London.

Classy brown leather seating areas allow employees to enjoy the big-screen TVs broadcasting the latest sporting events – the perfect area for a sports aficionado to whittle away a rare quiet afternoon.

Google – Victoria HQ: One of the world’s most forward-thinking firms, Google’s office space is influenced heavily by futuristic design elements. Minimalistic long blue corridors, lit by magnificent white lights, lead to amazing meeting areas – which would surely make those end of day meetings seem just that little bit more interesting.

Meanwhile the futuristic main workspace areas are a mix of red, white and black brilliance; the rows of desks – where the Google magic happens – look like they could have been pulled straight from the set of Stanley Kubrick’s classic film, 2001: A Space Odyssey. 

Similarly, Google-owned YouTube also has wonderfully quirky offices – designed to resemble the front room of TV icon, Del Boy from Only Fools and Horses.

Forward Internet Group – Camden HQ: A London office that features an eclectic mix of traditional touches and post-modernistic design, the Forward Internet Group’s Camden HQ is certainly something to marvel over. 

Statues of giant lobsters are complemented by striking red staircases, designed to resemble the seats in an amphitheatre. Meanwhile the meeting rooms are cordoned off by images of black autumnal trees and wrought iron fencing – bringing the feeling of outside into the work area. It’s all rather fantastic.