Shared office space can be a great way for your business to save money
Lets face it, every business would like to cut costs, especially when that doesn’t have a negative impact on productivity or customer satisfaction. A good shared office space set up or coworking space, can not only save you money, but even increase your effectiveness thanks to the saved time.
Shared office spaces are way more affordable than traditional offices in Nairobi. The prices of getting a nice office space in Nairobi are exorbitantly high and most are the times uneconomical for businesses and companies. Landlords impose difficult lease arrangements and just the fit our takes so long to accomplish for these traditional offices.
Most people end up going for very tiny offices or even apartment home offices, but these lack a sense of professionalism. Plus you still don’t escape the headache of managing an office on top of everything else you need to do.
While most people may argue that coworking is still an expensive venture, here are a few points put together to help you understand how coworking can help you cut cost and save your business in the long run:
Location, Location
In Nairobi, offices are not all that affordable for an average business, especially those located in and around the Central Business Districts.
Attracting top talent, investors, partners, and team leaders require you to have an office that is easily accessible.
For example, some of the areas in Nairobi like Upperhill, Kilimani and Westlands are areas easily accessible to many people from Nairobi CBD. These areas are also home to big corporates and potential clients. In such instance coworking spaces like Nairobi Garage, have set up affordable, serviced office spaces or rather affordable office spaces in both Kilimani and Westlands, making it easy for Small and Medium-sized offices to set up their offices.
Coworking spaces allow you to situate your business in an area that is closer and easily accessible to your clients, partners, and team members. It’s also important for your office to reflect the values that your company holds. This includes your office decor, front desk and maintenance of the space.
Helps you cut on staffing costs
Shared serviced offices typically have employees, like receptionists and administrative staff available to you. You get to benefit from having in-house staff. They can help in performing daily operational tasks that you would otherwise have to employ for.
Fixed Business Rates and utility bills
Renting a leased office means you have to pay fluctuating business rates and several utility bills. Coworking offices have fixed rates. When renting a desk space, be it monthly or daily, you will not be subject to any increases. The office provider absorbs them.
Already Outfitted offices
Forget office furniture, when renting a coworking office, you won’t have to worry about chairs, desks, drawers or filing cabinets. When you rent a leased office, you will need to purchase furniture and work on the interior design This can be expensive. You also need to worry about the wear and tear of the furniture in a couple of months or even full replacement. Apart from money, there is a lot of time and effort that goes into fitting an office. Joining a coworking space means getting all these things done thus helping you cut on costs around.
Pay only for your space!
It is obvious by now that while taking up an office space you get to pay for space you really need. Facilities like toilets, kitchens, silent room and break rooms are communal, managed facilities. Though there might be some few policies here and there in most coworking spaces, these places are freely accessible. The coworking office provider takes care of these so that you only have to pay for the desk space that you use.
In some coworking spaces like Nairobi Garage, meeting rooms are accessible for free for a given time frame depending on the package you are on and ones the free minutes are done the charges are also super cheap. This can provide huge savings for businesses, who would otherwise have to pay rent on the entire internal area.
No Agent Fees
Often, you’ll need an agent to acquire and negotiate a fair deal on a lease. It can be an hourly cost or a percentage of the rent. Either way, it’s an added cost. Coworking offices are much simpler and easier to locate. Platforms such as Coworker host thousands of coworking spaces across the globe and do not charge any finder’s fees. So, with a free service like this, renting an office can be as easy as taking an Uber taxi or even finding a hotel room on Air BnB.
