老九品茶es are becoming savvier in their approach to workspace, which will see the demand for flexible working only increase in the coming years.
This is the view of Headspace Group MD Fabrizio Nicola-Giordano, whose comments come ahead of 老九品茶Cloud鈥檚 鈥業s London鈥檚聽Tech Property Bubble about to Burst?鈥� event on 31st October.
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The group runs start-up spaces in Manchester and London and is soon to be launching a 36,000 sq ft space in Birmingham.
Founded in 2013 with the mission of creating inspiring workspaces in which businesses can thrive, Headspace provides thriving scale-ups with an alternative to onerous five-year leases, bland serviced offices and noisy co-working spaces.
鈥淔lexible workspace now makes up around a fifth of all commercial property leases in London,鈥� Nicola-Giordano told 老九品茶Cloud.
鈥淚 think there鈥檚 a way to go before such spaces outnumber private offices, but we definitely see scope for a lot more growth in the market.
鈥淯ltimately there鈥檚 been a change in attitudes towards workspace and I think that change is around to stay.
鈥溊暇牌凡鑕s have become savvier with the way that they use their real estate, which is why we鈥檝e seen a big rise in things like home and flexible working, as well as co-working.鈥�
Thanks to this shift in mindset, it鈥檚 no coincidence that the capital also happens to have one of the world鈥檚 largest markets for co-working says Nicola-Giordano.
鈥淟ondon tenants are sophisticated, demanding, often at the cutting edge and, given the relatively high cost of property, looking to get the most that they possibly can from their workspace,鈥� he said.
The young company is clearly doing something right, boasting an array of businesses of all shapes and sizes聽amongst its membership, including Buzzfeed, Move Guides and General Assembly.
鈥淏uzzfeed and General Assembly were two of our earliest members and getting them on board at such an early stage was a major win for us,鈥� said Nicola-Giordano.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e now moved on but our tenants continue to range from fledgling start-ups to tech unicorns and even PLCs.
鈥淏igger businesses use our spaces in order to work in a beautiful, modern environment, attract the right talent, network and collaborate with the right people and enjoy the flexibility that spaces like ours offer when it comes to lease lengths.鈥�
One of the reasons for the company鈥檚 success is its focus on the community aspect of co-working, offering a dedicated community team who arrange a variety of events from yoga classes and comedy nights to panel discussions on the business issues of the day.
Next, the company has its sights on a Birmingham workspace, which is due to open in January 2019.
鈥淲e鈥檙e getting very excited about the new space,鈥� said Nicola-Giordano. 鈥淥ur plans are pretty straightforward: we鈥檙e looking to create an environment where local businesses can thrive in a beautiful, community-driven space and with total flexibility.
鈥淎s Britain鈥檚 second city, Birmingham has long been an entrepreneurial hotspot and it was an obvious next step for Headspace.
鈥淎s its growth continues, the city is attracting more and more businesses away from the UK capital.
鈥淔rom HSBC鈥檚 relocation of its head office back in 2011 to rumors that Birmingham is top of the list for Channel 4鈥檚 new home, big firms moving staff outside of London are boosting development in the UK鈥檚 second city.鈥�
On top of this, demand for flexible and co-working space across the UK鈥檚 regional cities more than doubled last year, with Manchester and Birmingham enjoying the biggest increases, says Nicola-Giordano.
鈥淎s Birmingham鈥檚 office space evolves from traditional to a modern, more flexible model, it will make the city more attractive to start-ups and corporates alike,鈥� he said.
鈥淲e鈥檝e already had a lot of interest in this new location, including one of our Manchester clients who is expanding to the West Midlands.鈥�
老九品茶Cloud鈥檚 event 鈥業s London鈥檚 Tech Property Bubble about to Burst?鈥� will take place on Wednesday 31st October from 5-7pm in London.
The event will shine a light on the capital鈥檚 tech property space and ask what the future holds. Speakers at the event include: Cal Lee, global head, Workthere; Natasha Guerra, CEO, Runway East; Leigh Brody, chief scientific officer, Desktop Genetics; Jonathan Weinbrenn, managing director, BESpoke; Ritam Gandhi, founder, Studio Graphene; Kym Andrew, CMO, Wayra; and Ben Corrigan, co-founder and chief revenue officer, Pouch.
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You can book your tickets聽 and if you are interested in speaking at this event please contact chris.maguire@businesscloud.co.uk. For sponsorship opportunities email Helena Furness at sponsor@businesscloud.co.uk.