Occupiers & Tenants

You may have an immediate need to relocate, expand, take project space or a longer-term plan to bring agility into your real estate strategy. There are many reasons, sometimes unexpected, for tenants and occupiers to consider turnkey flexible workspace. Theoretically, it’s straightforward to acquire, occupy and exit serviced offices. In practice, it can often be a difficult task to even make sense of the options before negotiating and taking occupation. Coverbridge will listen to the client and understand their business objectives, then work with them to search, view, compare, negotiate, transact and then, importantly, maintain involvement thereafter. Advice during the occupation, contract renewal, expansion and ultimately exit are part of the service. As is advice on when not to do a deal.

The middle ground between a serviced office and a traditionally leased office could be the best route to take. These are ‘back-to-back’ deals or ‘managed’ offices where a third party manages the whole acquisition process taking the lease and aligning it, back-to-back, with a service agreement signed by the occupier. This can suit businesses that foresee a longer fixed term occupation than the 3 – 24 month initial term one might take in a serviced office. The requirement is likely to be much larger than the average serviced office headcount. The office would be procured for a set term with the total cost of occupation – property costs, professional fees, fit-out, IT, furniture, facilities management, exit costs – wrapped into a rentalised quarterly payment. Capex can be funded and the risk of occupying on time and budget is taken away from the client, as is the lease liability. While this provides similar benefits to a serviced office, the ‘flexibility’ premium should cost less and crucially it is client-led: the occupier has more control over location, image and property ownership. Coverbridge can help define and facilitate these opportunities.

Furthermore, occupiers with surplus space can make a return by offering it direct to market as a turnkey package, or providing it as serviced space on a joint venture basis with a serviced office operator. The space could be re-occupied in whole or part, on a pre-agreed timeframe. Coverbridge can advise and link delivery partners to make it happen.