Christmas is just around the corner and we suspect most of you are still scratching your heads about what to buy. We’re helping out by putting together a list of perfect gifts for your friends, family members and colleagues who spend most of their days hanging out in shared office spaces. These are the gadgets and tools that will make their days at work so much more enjoyable and they’ll think of you every time they head into the office.
Noise-cancelling headphones
gizmag.com
Shared office spaces are great, but sometimes you just need to completely ignore everyone else around you if you’re trying to complete a particularly sensitive piece of work – Thank goodness for the wonder that is noise-cancelling headphones – you can shut yourself off from the rest of the world and fully concentrate.
Really make their Christmas by throwing in a subscription to Spotify or an iTunes voucher so that they can relax into their work listening to some sweet, sweet tunes.
Standing desks
Give the gift of good health and productivity with a portable standing desk. These are becoming hugely popular in most offices as people discover the benefits of working in an upright position. Apparently, not only does standing while working have obvious health benefits, you are also more productive and focused. Sounds like a win to us.
The folks at Stand HQ have created a portable desk that you can attach to your average office chair so anyone working in a shared office space can use it. It’s light and easily portable so it can be taken to and from work every day.
Multipurpose charger
toolsandtoys.net
There’s nothing worse than getting to work and discovering that your phone has run out of charge and you’ve left your laptop power cable at home. You can give the gift of ‘supercharge’ this Christmas with a multipurpose charger. These nifty little gadgets hold varying lengths of charge that you can connect your laptop, phone, or tablet to. Within minutes you’ll see your phone come back to life to like magic.
There is a wide range of the chargers on the market these days, each offering a different speed of charge and storage capacity. Check out the options before you buy.
Cool lunch boxes
aliexpress.com
The fridge in a shared office space is a notorious location for ‘food-envy-related-theft’. If your lunch looks similar to or better than someone else’s they may mistakenly eat it for their morning snack. This can be easily avoided with a super cool lunch box that everyone recognises as yours.
These days lunch boxes come in all shapes and sizes with varying compartments and design themes. Pick one that suits your gift receiver’s taste but make sure it is cool enough so they won’t be bullied at the office.
Personalised mugs
creativebloq.com
Discovering someone else drinking from your special mug in a shared office space is a painful thing. It can often take a lot of self discipline not to rip it out of their hands while screaming, ‘THAT’S MINE!’
A personalised mug (much like a great lunch box) can help prevent this ugly office scene as not many people will drink from a mug that says, “This mug belongs to Richard and no one else should use it.
Infuser water bottles
uncommongoods.com
Drinking plain water is so 2014 – help your loved ones lead the way in water drinking in their shared office space with a water bottle with a built-in infuser. Whether you want a citrus boost, some cooling cucumber or a berry blast – you can add whatever natural flavours you want in the infuser and it will transform the taste of even the plainest of tap waters.
We particularly like the cucumber water bottle that you twist a whole cucumber into. That will definitely spark some office conversation.
Hipster backpack
simplyunique.tistory.com
People who work in shared office spaces tend to spend a lot of time travel to and from work carrying everything that constitutes their office. A solid backpack that fits their laptop, cables, notebooks, pens and a personalised mug is essential for avoiding broken backs.
Of course, you can’t just get any old backpack – it must be a Fjällräven Kanken canvas duffle bag, preferably in navy. All of the hipsters are using them and no slightly cheaper version that looks exactly the same will do.
Coffee vouchers
weekendnotes.co.uk
Being a freelancer or startup without a steady income is tough and takeaway coffees often have to be budgeted three months in advance in order to be able to afford them. Vouchers for the local coffee shop will be very happily received as while the Nespresso machine in the shared office kitchen is ok for that daily pick-me-up, those lattés from the hipster café next door are hard to beat.
Bike carry handle
templecycles.co.uk
Often the easiest way to commute to work is by bike (fixed wheel, of course) but the safest place to store your bike is in your shared office which can only be reached by climbing three flights of stairs. This nifty leather handle from Temple Cycles is a practical and stylish attachment for any bike that makes carrying it upstairs much less cumbersome.
Portable mini printer
zutalabs.com
While the current delivery date isn’t until May 2016, the ZUtA portable pocket printer is worth the wait. This cute little thing will be a big hit in any shared office as everyone crowds around to watch the wonder of the little robot who will print anything on any size of paper!
Weighing just 350 grams, this printer can literally be taken anywhere and will connect to laptops, tablets and phones by WiFi. We’re jealous we don’t have one of these in our office… hint hint, nudge nudge!
