Home VS Traditional Office Space

[FishBowl]

When looking for a space in which to work, I'm sure any business owner will be looking for somewhere where they would feel comfortable.

However, when considering whether this space should be a home office or a more traditional office space, how do you decide and on what elements of your business should this decision be based?

Take Head and Griffiths in Fishbowl Three as an example. They are an online bespoke tailored suit company, currently starting to think about getting an office for their business now that their time in their incubation unit is coming to an end.

So, they sell suits online, and will want somewhere to show off these suits and to do fitting for people, as well as meeting with potential clients.

Should this be a shop, then? With a large window area to attract passing trade? Or, as an online company, should it be more of a showroom? Or even an office? And if it is an office, is there anything wrong with saving on costs by putting that office in their home?

What, if any, effect do you think the physical space a business occupies ca affect how the business is perceived?

 

[JohnNash]

I would expect physical space has a big affect on how a business is perceived but the tailor is an interesting one.

As a shop it could expand from the on-line business so it could open up new avenues, but if the online aspect is a USP (save money due to lack of overheads) then that changes things. Perhaps if it was in a less expensive but accessible retail area they could get round that - thinking high street in a suburb or similar or small shop in a residential area.

Personally, I wouldn't necessarily expect an online tailors to have a retail premises and wouldn't be hugely surprised to have to go to a house for a fitting. That said, I would expect it to be a dedicated space ideally with a separate entrance and in a 'good' area.

 

[Logic]

We're going through this stage at the moment too. Home office, retail shop or dedicated office?

We've decided to go for dedicated offices, as it would allow us to expand, entertain clients and meetings and we're also going to make use of the office space as a photography studio.

A suburban retail shop can be a good idea if your business isn't too niche and appeals to the wider public, that gives you some prospect of walk in trade aswell. But the costs involved are much steeper, not necessarily in rent but more so in renovation costs. Most likely the walk in trade wouldn't even cover your costs 1st year.

I'd suggest that your premises forms part of your set up and manner and hence will have a profound impact on how you are percieved by customers. A home office suggest something on the side, small scale, unprofessional perhaps.

 

[FishBowl]

It's interesting to hear your comments around this, and, in response to JoshNash, would have to say that yes, the fact that Head and Griffiths are an online company would probably make people more receptive to fittings in a non-shop space.

In response to Logic, I think the idea of an office space which can also be used for something else makes sense. I know Owain and Dom are currently struggling with space in their current incubation unit, so I'm sure a bit of storage space wouldn't go amiss!

I think the main issue here is walk in trade. How important is that walk in trade? Important enough to go for something which is more expensive and which, as Logic suggests, may not be paid for by the walk in trade it attracts? Or is walk-in trade less important for a business which is based online?

 

[SusanBryant]

If their main objective is to be an online business then having a shop, as such, I think could distract from their online efforts, as well as pacing a huge, unnecessary financial burden on them.

Susan

 

[max]

A different perspective. There's a lack of fit between either home or shop (either one in a single location) and selling a niche product to a presumably widespread client base via the internet. Try going to where the clients are and meet them. Hire hotel suites.

 

[Abbey Business Centres]

A different perspective. There's a lack of fit between either home or shop (either one in a single location) and selling a niche product to a presumably widespread client base via the internet. Try going to where the clients are and meet them. Hire hotel suites.

Will that give the most professional impression though? I agree that some hotels do provide pretty good meeting facilities but in the main, would you really want to meet and greet someone important in a hotel lobby surrounded by suitcases and screaming kids (as it is half term next week!) potentially?

James

 

[max]

Suites for the suits, James. Pre-arrange appointment times. Pick upmarket (not family) hotels with appropriate and well-briefed reception facilities, notified of who is due to arrive, when and where clients can be received in a decent manner in case of an overrun.
End-to-end personal service for pre-qualified clients (hope that the website manages a lot of that pre-qualification task through the information and selection mechanisms incorporated and associated with it) who expect personal service in keeping with the best in bespoke.
If the business in question were mine, I wouldn't be relying on the website but would trial DM targeting high net worth individuals plus follow-up in multi-stage campaigns each beginning three months or so ahead of each event in order to drive through the system enough prospects, location by location.

All the best

Max

 

[matt1983]

Hi

I took a giant leap last year and went from running my business from my home (converted shed actually!) to a proper business premises, i havent looked back since!

Yes working from home does save money but its actually a negative when it comes to selling physical products or offering a physical service. I found this out as soon as i had moved. Also another negative about working from home is mixing business with a home life isnt easy....its far beter to physically split the 2 and then when you come home you can switch off (a tiny bit!) and relax and not keep popping into the other room to complete something.

Within a month i had customers turning up, browsing my small shop area and getting work done....before when i worked at home people were reluctant to visit simply because it was a home address, having that business premises makes people trust you a bit more and shows that your serious enough about the business that you have taken the leap and got proper premises.

My outgoings such as rent etc have quadrupled actually to what they were but so has my turn over so its all relative.

Some of the extra things i had to consider was different insurance, higher business rates (although you might qualify for rate relief), higher electric bills, water bills and obviously your monthly rental also silly things like waste removal and getting charged for the water drainage from your roof!

 

[FishBowl]

Firstly, thank you to Max for all of that information - I have passed it on to Owain and Dominic at Head and Griffiths and I'm sure it will be really helpful. I'm in no doubt that your advice will also be of worth to other people on this site.

I do agree with some of the comments about the perception a customer might have of a business person inviting them to meet with them at a hotel suite as opposed to their own premises, but I think in a way this could also be a huge positive - a kind of 'my business is so successful on such a widespread scale that I can't pin myself down in one location' type of thing perhaps... Either way, sounds like a good plan a stop gap measure if a business is looking to eventually get their own premises.

In response to Matt, I'm really impressed to hear how much you business has increased following you moving to a new premises - I guess if your turnover can justify higher renting costs that all is well! On the other hand, I spoke with Owain yesterday at an inafishbowl.com meeting and he seems very keen on a swanky, modern, funky office in a fashionable part of town that, frankly, will require him to increase his turnover by a HUGE amount before he could pay the rent out of it! I guess this is the balance to be found - somewhere suitable but also within the realms of your budget and potential budget!

 

[matt1983]

Well the unit i moved into was an absolute tip, the previous tenant left huge amounts of rubbish behind that i had to clear first. Its fairly cheap compared to what is available but it needed alot of work doing to get it to a useable state...i would say its taken about 6 months to get it where i want it to be but you get what you pay for really...theres no reason why somewhere cheap cant be made to look/feel like a high end place its just the exterior you have to put up with i suppose...you can do what ever you want inside

Also dont run before you can walk i always say, build up to that swanky place....the fact that your moving into a premises away from home is a very good start...id recommend going somewhere cheap first and building up slow because the last thing you want is have to increase your workload simply to pay for a flash office....you'll have enough on your plate with bills etc without having to flog yourself to death just to keep a roof over your head.

I made sure before i even thought about moving that i could afford the rent/rates and electric on the money i was making from home...at least you know you can manage that and wont have to give it up if a bad few months arises where your not earning much.

 

[max]

Thanks FishBowl. By the way, I intended no disrespect to the Head and Griffiths website. Its visual and its editorial style and content, including the "Create My Suit" feature, make an eminently suitable foundation. There should always be fresh editorial that illustrates Head and Griffiths' viewpoint.
It's always good to hear of companies graduating successfully from an Innovation Centre.

All the best

Max

 

[FishBowl]

To both Max and Matt,

Thank you again for your input, and again for some very valuable points. I think Owain was perhaps getting a little carried away with the idea of a really swanky office, when all they really need is a space which is adequate for now and where they can really build up their business.

Indeed, incubation offices are a great tool for start ups, allowing them to spend more time thinking about their business and less thinking about their premises in the early months from starting out. But it really is now time for Head and Griffiths to move to their own business premises.

Have you seen the advice Rachel Elnaugh gave to the business on finding their property? You can see it here now. What do you think of her advice? Do you think that the expert commentators on inafishbowl.com are providing useful information in general for the Fishbowl businesses?

 

[max]

Rachel’s piece is about context. Feng shui’s outside my experience, but she’s right as regards another point, the typography of the Head & Griffiths logo with its downward sloping bars on the H and A. They do look “unhappy” on the minimalist website, unlike in the Arts and Crafts influenced context for which they are meant. Then, sure, the designers are young, but Head & Griffiths aren’t after a young market exclusively (sorry, Russell Copley), and it’s important that the website’s inclusivity shouldn’t be damaged by slip-ups of detail such as the seeming overlap between “design” and “style preference” and the implementation of photography, also on the Shirts page, where the grey backdrop makes both the white cloth and Dominic’s skin tones grey, while the rumpled sleeves appear far too long for his arms. To me, that one page detracts from the attention to detail that one expects of “bespoke”, something that the remainder of the website successfully implies.

Do you feel that the expert commentators are providing advice that the Fishbowl businesses wouldn't find elsewhere?

Max

 

[FishBowl]

Hi Max,

Some valuable advice - clearly it's really important for any business to really consider the implications of what they do and how every single thing works to represent their business.

I think that the Fishbowl businesses may well find the information they need elsewhere. Like every other start-up business, they would of course gather the information together eventually and learn through experience.

The benefits of being a business on inafishbowl.com are that the advice and guidance they need comes from a number of reputable expert sources who have gathered together on this one website to give up to date, easy to access information. This information is then shared with everyone who views the website, meaning that instead of all start-ups gathering their own information and all making the same mistakes as each other, they can learn from the experiences and advice given on inafishbowl.com.

It's a great tool for anyone interested in business to gather resources and information, and to see how starting a business really works. We all go through similar experiences and issues, so why not share what we learn from them?