Office Relocation

When it’s time to relocate, how do you ensure your next move is the right one?

Congratulations. Business is booming and you're running out of space fast. But you need to hire. You need somewhere to meet clients. And you need to keep growing without asking your team to hot desk. Perhaps you want to place yourself where your customers are or create space for your project teams. Perhaps your space outstrips your needs and downsizing could help cut costs. So how do you engineer an office move that delivers everything you need whilst avoiding the pitfalls? Here’s our guide…


Who's in charge?

It’s perhaps the most fundamental element in an office relocation’s success, and yet it’s the one that’s so often overlooked. Someone needs to be pulling the strings – so appoint a project manager to turn your office relocation plan into a reality.

Depending on the scale of the move, the project manager may need to appoint a small team to help.

Where should I move my office to?

Being clear on the business drivers for the move can help narrow the field when searching for your next workplace. Consider your ‘must-haves’. What are the non-negotiable elements that must be in place for the office to be a viable option? Think in terms of:

  • Location
  • Transport links
  • Facilities - within the building and locally
  • The business opportunity (i.e. how will the move benefit client acquisition and retention?)
  • The ease of doing business
  • Teams - how will the move affect your people in terms of cost, (in)convenience and morale?

A large and mobile sales team, for example, may want to be close to key transport links. A prestigious business needs a prestige space. And it can make sense to relocate with other like-minded businesses so it’s easier to build collaborations and find clients. If, for example, you’re a creative business, situating yourself in a creative hub is likely to make more sense than dropping yourself in the middle of a bunch of insurance companies.

How do I plan an office relocation?

Put together an office relocation plan that addresses the issues elsewhere in this guide, and includes the following:

  • How much space do you need? (You may find our office space calculator useful for this)
  • How long will you need the office for?
  • What infrastructure will your new office need (IT, utilities, internet speeds etc)?
  • How much storage will you need?
  • When will you involve your team in the move?
  • When will you tell customers?
  • In what ways will your marketing need to change (i.e. amending website, stationery, business cards etc)?

Break each of the above issues into bitesize tasks, assign each one to an owner, and set a deadline for completing each element.

Remember, you don’t have to do everything yourself. With the right office relocation services teams, you can reduce the to-do list considerably and make moving far simpler.

Moving with Hubble makes life easier too. Not only will we help you find your next base of operations (see below), we’ll also help you negotiate a great deal and we’ll work with you to ensure that, from first search to securing your new office, everything goes smoothly.

What type of office do I need?

There’s a wide range of office types on the market and at first glance, some of them can seem very similar. Here’s a quick guide to distinguishing your shared office from a managed office:

Serviced office

All set up and ready to go from the date you move in, a serviced office is the simple, no-hassle option, with bills, utilities and day-to-day running all handled for you, and more flexible contracts that don’t tie you down.

Find out more about serviced offices

Shared office

Perfect for startups and established organisations alike looking for affordable city office space at a sensible price, sharing your office space means sharing the costs.

Find out more about shared offices

Managed office

Gives you all the benefits of a serviced office but also lets you determine the precise specifications of the building itself. Ideal if you need a bespoke space tailored to your brand but want to avoid the upfront costs of a leased office.

Find out more about managed offices

Leased office

Leases are typically measured in years and, unlike a serviced office, the lease is less of a ‘plug and play’ option. But in return for sorting the WiFi out yourself, you get a space that you can control. If you’re able to make a bigger upfront contribution, a lease could be more cost-efficient too.

Find out more about leased offices

Still not sure? Check out this Which Type of Office is Right for My Business flowchart.

Where can I find my next office?

Hubble enables you to search the whole market in real time. From leased to serviced to shared, you’ll find every type of office space available, and you can filter by up-to-date pricing, live availability, location, amenities, exclusive offers and more.

We’ve made finding your next office as easy as booking a hotel room, and we’re trusted by the likes of Trustpilot, Accenture, and Citymapper.

How much should I budget for my office relocation?

Budgeting for office space isn’t an exact science, but the right data can help you make an informed decision. Our office space calculator makes that job much easier, helping you identify the right budget range for you.

Then, factor in the additional facilities you’ll need to determine whether the price will be to the upper or lower end of that range.

When is the best time to move office?

Projects still need completing. Meetings still need to happen. New work still needs to be brought in. Yet although there may never be an easy time to make a move, some times are easier than others:

  • Identify ‘clear space’: Eliminate peak periods and the essential expos, conferences, training sessions and other days you have planned over the coming year.
  • Target your moving dates/times: Most leases expire on the last day of the month, which makes the period around that day particularly busy (and expensive) for office relocation companies. If you can, plan your move mid-month.
  • Midweek? Evening? Weekend? Typically, you’ll pay more for an office removal company at weekends or during evenings. So there’s a cost benefit analysis to be made in timing the move out of office hours.

How to avoid relocation pitfalls

An office relocation is an exciting time and a big deal. It’s also a whole lot easier if you avoid pitfalls like these:

“We never saw that coming”

Surprises invariably cost money. From unexpected charges to escape your current lease to surprises in the services you’ll enjoy at your new location, there really is no substitute for doing your homework and creating an office relocation plan that dots every i.

Unrealistic expectations

You probably won’t be able to book office relocation services the week before you move. The telecoms people won’t be able to appear as if by magic with a day’s notice. With the right planning, however – and providing you give the move the time and attention it requires – you won’t need them to.

Unhappy workers

Office relocations work best when you take your people with you (in an emotional as well as physical sense). Give your teams the opportunity to get involved from day one and they’ll be far more invested in the move. Here are some ways of doing that:

  • Collect thoughts: What are the things that don’t work about the current office that you can resolve with the relocation? What are the opportunities they see in the relocation?
  • Part of the team: You may not need a cast of thousands as part of your relocation project team, but involving people from across the organisation and at every level ensures you bring a broad range of expertise and experience to the table - and that can only benefit the move.
  • Sub teams: A relocation has many facets. Involving teams in elements of the move that directly affect them can be a great way of generating buy in and ensuring nothing gets overlooked. Encourage the IT team to investigate WiFi infrastructure at potential sites. Ask facilities to report on parking, transport links or the environmental advantages of the site. And get your operational teams comparing the business opportunities of potential locations.
  • Keep communicating: So everyone knows what’s happening when.

You can arrange every element of your office relocation yourself, but that increased workload brings increased risk. Share the responsibilities with an office relocation specialist like Hubble, and you increase the chances of a simple, seamless and successful move.

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