Nibletz Staff
When the time comes for you to open a new office, or even get your very first office, it’s not always easy to know where you should start. You’re probably thinking of calling a commercial realtor, and you’ve probably already looked online at what you can get for your budget, but other than that, you might not know where the start. And if that’s the case, you’re not alone. It can be daunting to find a new space for your business. But the way to make it a little bit easier is to firmly know what you’re looking for. Yes, budget will play a big part in what you can and can’t afford, but it will help you to know what kind of space you need when you start the physical search.
Reception
First up, you need to think about whether or not you’re going to need a reception area. When you’re just starting out and you’re looking for somewhere to house your staff, this may not matter so much. However, if you’re planning on having clients, customers, or suppliers over to the office, then you’re definitely going to want to think about a space that has a reception area. Then, you need to work out whether you need a small area just suitable for greeting guests, or somewhere huge and impressive, with an array of receptionists working away.
Meeting Space
Next, you should then think about what meeting spaces you need. Or whether you need any at all. For some companies, they can get by with one communal area to hold their meetings in. But for others, they’re going to need dozens of meeting rooms to conduct meetings at the same time. So look at your calendar. This can often be the biggest indicator of the amount of meeting space you will need for your new office space.
Restrooms
Then, you need to be thinking about the facilities the space should have. If there’s one bathroom and you have 20+ employees, it’s just not going to work. You’re also going to want to think about covering off everything from urinal mats to sanitary machines. Whether it’s something you have to supply or the landlord will sort for you, it’s food for thought to think about as you’re planning and searching.
Communal Space
But you’ve also got the communal spaces to think about too. It’s easy to know that you need areas for people to work in, but they also need areas to take a break in. From kitchen space complete with the right office kitchen essentials, to somewhere to sit and breakout areas too, you need to work out how much communal space your staff will need and whether that should take priority over anything else.
Individual Offices
Finally, you’ve also got individual offices to think about. You may not need them, but if you’re planning on moving somewhere that you can grow into, they could be handy to have, or at least space to add them in, should you need to have senior offices in the future.
