With so many offices lying dormant over the past 18 months, it's easy to overlook the fact that many companies have been active in giving up their existing space and moving to new premises. While the pandemic may have delayed decision-making until firms have a clearer view of how to adapt to a new way of working, for those companies who have impending lease breaks a decision must be made.

At Cityspace, we have seen an increasing number of clients now making the decision to move premises. A recent project we have just completed is for the French cosmetic, skincare and perfume company, Sisley. Originally sited in Portobello Road, Sisley engaged us to fit-out a top floor office space at 33 Foley Street, Fitzrovia.

The existing space had been previously been fitted for meeting rooms and office space and required a complex adaptation to make the project work for our client’s needs. The original structure comprised a transom of double glazed panels, all of which were bespoke structures. The Cityspace team designed and built a new floor plan, utilising the existing glazing sections to create a suite of offices, meeting rooms and workspaces, specifically for Sisley’s requirements.

Thinking ahead

According to Knight Frank, active demand for office space rose in the second quarter of this year, however vacancy rates also rose to 7.8%, which is 1.2% above the long-run average for London. 

While the market may appear quiet, our advice to clients is not to be complacent - while there may be a higher level than normal of space available, it is still very important to think well ahead for your next office move.

Nowadays, we recommend to our clients looking for spaces under 5,000 sq.ft to start their decision-making process at least 6 months before lease expiry. For properties between 5,000-15,000 sq.ft we recommend starting up to one year beforehand and, for bigger properties, an 18 month time frame is recommended in order to provide the widest choice available.

At Cityspace, we provide extensive support to clients in the early stages of identifying and selecting new office premises. 

If you need help identifying your next property, we have extensive knowledge of both the established commercial neighbourhoods and the emerging hotspots, to provide you with the widest range of options. Using our market-leading knowledge bank, we can identify upstream opportunities of people who may be moving, but have not yet told their landlord or agent. In addition to these off-market opportunities, we also have close relationships with property surveyors, who can provide details of current properties available for let or sale. 

To help you select a new building, our Evaluation Report provides a full building appraisal and feasibility plan to ensure that your potential new office space suits your company’s organisational structure and working style, has flexibility for the future, and allows for any envisaged expansion. 

For more information, please click here or contact the Cityspace team on 0207 638 4250 or email info@cityspacemanagement.co.uk.