What is a temporary office?
A temporary office is exactly as it sounds–an office that doesn’t require the same length of time commitment required of traditional leased offices. Temporary offices are often offered on flexible licenses, which allow tenants the freedom to move to another space on relatively short notice.
As the way we work continues to evolve, more and more office space providers are seeing the benefits of offering office space on temporary rather than long-term bases.
How do I find a temporary office?
With more and more office providers offering temporary office space and fitting out their spaces for growing companies and digital nomads, there is a plethora of options on the marketplace for various purposes and suiting various team sizes and budgets. If you’re looking for temporary office space, check out HubbleHQ’s listing page, which offers the largest online selection of flexible office space in London.
When is renting an office temporarily better than leasing an office long term?
Temporary office space can be beneficial for growing companies, digital freelancers, and offsite innovation labs.
Startups
There are more startups in the UK than ever before, and the nature of startups is that they can grow very quickly. A startup can begin with just two people and employ hundreds within a few years. Regardless of where a startup company is on their journey from idea to IPO, they require a space for people to work. While two co-founders can simply take two desks in a coworking space, once the company grows, it becomes more feasible to move into a private office. However, a high-growth startup may employ 20 people one year, then grow to 50 people in the next year. For such companies, it often makes more sense to take temporary office space until their numbers become more stable.
Freelancers
The gig economy is growing. According to a survey commissioned by Upwork and Freelancers Union, the freelance workforce grew 8.1% between 2014 and 2018, and it is predicted that this number will continue to grow. While freelancers often have the ability to work from anywhere in the world, they also report that they often prefer to work in the company of like-minded people. From this, the concept of coworking was created–providing temporary offices for freelancers and digital nomads.
Innovation labs
Traditional large corporations are starting to see the benefits of innovation and many have thus created innovation labs in order to find ways of utilizing technology and to keep up with the ever-changing technological marketplace. Many companies find it more effective to host their innovation labs offsite for set periods of time, therefore a temporary, flexible office is a great option.
What are the pros and cons of a temporary office?
The pros of temporary office space have already been mentioned: you don’t need to commit to a space for a traditional five or ten year lease. The cons are that you don’t have the security of space for five or ten years, and that flexible office space providers tend not to allow large changes to their temporary space.
While your company is growing, taking temporary space makes more sense, as it’s easy to adjust for fluctuations in team size. If you find that your company is growing rapidly, it’s easier to move to a larger space. Once your numbers have become more stable and you’re looking for a space to truly make reflective of your brand and company culture, then you can look into taking on a lease.
How can renting a temporary office help my growing business?
Aside from having the flexibility to move on relatively short notice, many temporary office spaces are located in coworking spaces. Contrary to popular belief, coworking spaces don’t just provide large rooms for freelancers and people from different companies to work together. The majority of coworking spaces also provide private offices. This gives you and your company a fixed space to set up longer-term workstations but also the benefit of being plugged into a large coworking network.
For example, HubbleHQ has a private office in a tech coworking space and we’re just loving the benefits. Not only do we get to work alongside other inspirational companies, but the sense of community creates a buzz that boosts team morale. We’ve found this has helped us immensely when it comes to networking and learning more about our industry.
