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Gherkin Co-Owner: "Now is the time" to Buy London Offices Properties

The co-owner of the Gherkin, the City's iconic property which is also known as 30 St Mary Axe, has said that "the time is right" to buy more office properties in London.

Evans Randall Ltd are set to make their biggest investment in three years, by purchasing offices in the City, in Drapers Gardens, for a price tag of around £250m.

Posted on: Fri, 30 Jul 2010 at 4:23 PM

North West Office Space Continues to Attract Increased Enquiries

The UK’s leading broker of serviced office space has now added the North West edition of its Serviced Office Review series to its website – www.officebroker.com.

Posted on: Fri, 30 Jul 2010 at 4:02 PM

Video Tour Shows off Period Features in 18th Century Office Property

A video tour which has recently been added to the officebroker.com website shows the many period charms and striking features of an 18th century property.

Among the qualities of the historic Leatherhead-based building - which is set in 10 acres of parkland and gardens - are large sash windows, arch entranceways, pillars and ornate sculptures, along with an impressive entrance hall that leads to a modern reception.

Posted on: Fri, 30 Jul 2010 at 3:37 PM

Critics Call Time on Liverpool Office Space Scheme

A controversial scheme to bring new office space and homes to Liverpool, which was formerly put on hold during the credit crunch, may still go ahead if developers Maghull can gain extra time for planning procedures.

Work had begun on the £100m Hope Street scheme, which was set to bring office space, apartments, a mini market, restaurants and an underground car park to Liverpool, but was then stopped as funding dried up during the recession.

Posted on: Fri, 30 Jul 2010 at 2:50 PM

Work Begins on Haydock Office Space Scheme

Work has begun on the Empress Park development, a £30m scheme which will generate over 120,000 sq. ft. of industrial and office space in Haydock.

Posted on: Fri, 30 Jul 2010 at 10:55 AM

Mill Hill Business Centre Completes Office Refurbishment

A business centre based in central Mill Hill, located on Daws Lane adjacent to the scenic Mill Hill Park, has recently completed refurbishment works on the office property's annexe.

Three interconnecting office suites are currently available in this part of the centre, located in the grounds of the 19th century Daws House, which can be taken as a whole or separately. The air-conditioned annexe has its own kitchenette and offers access from its own street entrance.

Posted on: Thu, 29 Jul 2010 at 2:20 PM

Landmark Brighton Office Property Added to officebroker.com

Last week, another new addition was made to the officebroker.com website.

The property is based in the centre of Brighton, in a prominent location on Queen's Road, and offers modern serviced office space complete with many key benefits and services.

Posted on: Thu, 29 Jul 2010 at 12:25 PM

Serviced Offices in Greater London Explored in Officebroker.com Report

An insight into the serviced office space industry in Greater London has today been published by officebroker.com, the UK’s largest broker of serviced office space, tracking the trends and changes recorded by the broker in Q2 10 compared to Q2 09.

Posted on: Thu, 29 Jul 2010 at 10:50 AM

Will BBC Bosses Pack Up and Move North to MediaCityUK?

As 1,500 BBC staff prepare to relocate from their London offices and homes as part of the move North to Salford - to the BBC's new office and studio base at MediaCityUK - BBC bosses are being criticised for not following suit.

According to a BBC statement, BBC North director Peter Salmon "will make the move to Salford when the time is right", but until that point he will reportedly continue to live in Twickenham and rent a flat close to MediaCityUK.

Posted on: Thu, 29 Jul 2010 at 10:38 AM

Potential Office Scheme Revealed for Leicester City Centre

A potential new Headquarters office scheme in Leicester city centre have been revealed by development consultant Blueprint, as options for the St George’s area of the city continue to be explored.

Posted on: Thu, 29 Jul 2010 at 10:11 AM

Design Competition Launched for New Co-op Head Office Scheme

With work now underway on The Co-operative Group’s new head office in Manchester, as reported earlier this month on the officebroker.com blog, a competition has been launched to find a design team that will help create the public realm element of the 20-acre site – focusing on the open area that will sit in front of the groups new city centre office space.

Posted on: Thu, 29 Jul 2010 at 9:49 AM

Work on Preston Office Space Due to Begin

The preparation work for an £8m office space scheme in Preston is due to begin, paving the way for the construction of 23 office buildings by Windermere based Roundhouse Properties.

Posted on: Thu, 29 Jul 2010 at 9:16 AM

£48m Burnley Bridge Development Will Be "Open for Business"

A £48m 70-acre industrial and office space development in Yorkshire is still set to go ahead, despite a cut in regional development agency funding.

Leeds-based Eshton Group is confident that despite losing single program funding from the North West Development Agency, Burnley Bridge business park will continue to go ahead.

Posted on: Wed, 28 Jul 2010 at 4:22 PM

Chiswick Business Centre Adds Video Tour to Office Profile

A business centre based in Chiswick, located just minutes away from Gunnersbury train and tube station, has featured in a video tour that is now available to view on the officebroker.com website.

The centre is situated within a modern property on Chiswick High Road, located in the western region of Greater London, and offers a range of excellent services such as state-of-the-art communication systems, broadband access, and on-site car parking.

Posted on: Wed, 28 Jul 2010 at 1:50 PM

Birmingham Office Space Review Published Today

Officebroker.com, the UK’s largest broker of serviced office space, has today published the West Midlands edition of its Serviced Office Review series, a set of quarterly reports which present changes within the serviced office space market quarter-on-quarter based on the brokers own internal data.

Posted on: Wed, 28 Jul 2010 at 11:24 AM

Liverpool Business Centre Hosts Launch Evening & Networking Event

A serviced office business centre, located in the grounds of Liverpool John Lennon Airport, held an official launch party recently in partnership with Training and Development company No Guru.

The event, which combined business networking with tours of the office building, also provided guests with a complimentary hot air balloon ride and a wine and canapé reception.

Posted on: Wed, 28 Jul 2010 at 11:08 AM

Office Space to form part of Elephant & Castle Development

The redevelopment of Elephant & Castle (SE1) has officially been signed off and will now allow the wide-scale regeneration, which will include 90,000 sq. ft. of office space, to commence.

Posted on: Wed, 28 Jul 2010 at 9:44 AM

Talbot Gateway Development in Blackpool Will Survive

The Talbot Gateway scheme in Blackpool, which would include more than 333,000 sq. ft. of office space once completed, will survive despite the withdrawal of funding from North West Development Agency (NWDA) according to Blackpool Council.

Posted on: Wed, 28 Jul 2010 at 8:53 AM

Salford Firm to Double its Office Space

An engineering firm in Salford will add 25,000 sq. ft. of workspace to its headquarters, doubling the amount of office space at its disposal and adding 25% to its manufacturing capacity according to a report published today on the business website thebusinessdesk.com.

Posted on: Tue, 27 Jul 2010 at 5:09 PM

Price of Serviced Office Space in Central London Increases for 2nd Consecutive Quarter in 2010

According to data from officebroker.com, the UK’s largest broker of serviced office space, the average price of a workstation in serviced offices throughout Central London has risen for a second consecutive quarter in 2010, increasing from £475.00 in Q2 09 to £501.00 in Q2 10.

Posted on: Tue, 27 Jul 2010 at 4:31 PM

Birmingham Office Space Secures Second Major Tenant

Office space at one of Birmingham’s newest and most prominent office schemes has secured a significant new tenant in the shape of accountancy firm Mazars.

Posted on: Tue, 27 Jul 2010 at 3:20 PM

MP Battles to Save Kirkstall Forge from Government Spending Axe

Kirkstall Forge, a proposed mixed-use development site located between Leeds and Shipley that has been in planning since 2003, is facing the axe in the wake of cuts being made by the Coalition Government.

Writing as a guest on the Guardian website, Leeds West MP Rachel Reeves is committed to keeping the plans alive, which she believes will be "good for the economy and good for the community", bringing jobs, growth, and transport improvements to the West Leeds region.

Posted on: Tue, 27 Jul 2010 at 2:40 PM

"Extremely helpful" Service Helps Wilson Shaw Find New London Office

Legal practice Wilson Shaw, who established a new office in the City of London through officebroker.com in May 2010, have commended Account Manager Rebecca-Jane Strawford on her "superior" and "extremely helpful" service.

Posted on: Tue, 27 Jul 2010 at 11:44 AM

Charity Football Match: Sheepy Old Boys vs OB United

Last week 14 members of the officebroker.com team pulled on their football boots to help raise funds for the church floor restoration in Sheepy Magna. The 11-a-side game was organised by Jim Venables, managing director of officebroker.com, and pitted the specially formed OB United against Jim’s regular team the mighty Sheepy Old Boys.

Posted on: Tue, 27 Jul 2010 at 10:55 AM

Excess at Expense of Small Business Lending Could Lead to Bank Tax

British banks could face a tax on profits if they fail to promote lending to smaller businesses, this was the warning delivered by Business Secretary Vince Cable yesterday as the government seeks to encourage the flow of money to businesses through a boost in lending.

Posted on: Tue, 27 Jul 2010 at 9:47 AM

Jobs Under Threat by Closure of Regional Government Offices

The regional Government Office for the North West, which has staff based in Manchester's City Tower and the Cunard Building in Liverpool, will be scrapped - with up to 200 jobs lost.

The Office currently carries out the work of 13 different government departments in the North West, but according to Eric Pickles - the Department for Communities and Local Government secretary - the regional offices are "interfering" and inefficient.

Posted on: Tue, 27 Jul 2010 at 9:36 AM

Manufacturing & Office Space Acquired by Eatonfield Group

Eatonfield, the Cheshire based property developer, has exchanged contracts on a site in Devon which includes 56,000 sq. ft. of office space.

Posted on: Tue, 27 Jul 2010 at 9:01 AM

Creative Office Space in Doncaster Given Green Light

A project aimed at encouraging entrepreneurship in the creative industries has been given the green light in Doncaster, with studio, office space and conference space set to be constructed on the former site of Doncaster Art College.

Posted on: Mon, 26 Jul 2010 at 5:21 PM

Media Centre in Leeds Added to officebroker.com

A business centre offering media facilities and studio space in Leeds, along with serviced office space and an excellent range of facilities, has recently been added to the officebroker.com website.

Providing bespoke on-site media facilities including music and TV recording studios, along with state of the art AV equipment in all conference rooms, this property is ideal for small or medium companies that specialise in media production, or are involved in the industry.

Posted on: Mon, 26 Jul 2010 at 5:04 PM

Central London Office Space Explored in New Look Report

officebroker.com, the UK’s leading broker of serviced office space, has today published a revised edition of its Serviced Office Review Series, tracking the changes officebroker.com has recorded in the serviced office industry in Q2 10 compared to Q2 09.

Posted on: Mon, 26 Jul 2010 at 4:48 PM

Prime Manchester Business Centre Features in Office Video Tour

A prestigious business centre in the heart of Manchester city centre, which provides top-class office space with superb views and facilities, has featured in an office video tour which is now available to view online at officebroker.com.

The office property at Piccadilly Place in central Manchester has been designed to BREEAM Excellent standards, and the centre itself offers a modern environment with quality facilities and professional support services.

Posted on: Mon, 26 Jul 2010 at 12:03 PM

LateRooms.com Upgrade to New Office Space in Manchester

Online hotel finders LateRooms.com are due to move their head office in Manchester to a new, larger location to allow for future business expansion.

Up to 350 staff will transfer from the firm's current Deva Centre offices to the new Peninsula Building near Cheetham Hill in October.

Posted on: Mon, 26 Jul 2010 at 11:30 AM

Pie Factory’s Office Space Attracts Talent

Yet more office space within The Pie Factory at MediaCityUK has been successfully let, this time to talent agency Red Door Management.

Posted on: Mon, 26 Jul 2010 at 11:17 AM

New Tenants for Liverpool's Cotton Exchange Office Complex

A popular office complex located within Liverpool's iconic Grade II listed Cotton Exchange property has attracted six new tenants on a long-term lease basis.

A total of 12,760 sq ft of office space has been let by owner Bruntwood, which also provides serviced office space, and the largest letting has gone to training provider Synapse Learning.

Posted on: Mon, 26 Jul 2010 at 9:33 AM

Legal & General Acquire Central Manchester Office Space

The Property Fund of Legal & General has acquired over 12,000 sq. ft. of office space in Central Manchester as part of a £17.3M deal with HSBC Pension Fund.

Posted on: Mon, 26 Jul 2010 at 9:06 AM

E.ON Pre-let Nottingham Office Space

The Nottingham office of commercial property firm King Sturge has announced through a press release the successful pre-let of a new 105,500 sq. ft. office space development in Nottingham City Centre to utilities giant E.ON.

Posted on: Fri, 23 Jul 2010 at 3:35 PM

Former Halliwells Staff to Vacate "over the top" Spinningfields Offices

Staff that were formerly employed by troubled law firm Halliwells, which has recently been taken over by HBJ Gateley Wareing, are expected to vacate their plush Manchester Spinningfields offices by September.

Mike Ward, who runs HBJ Gateley Wareing's Birmingham office, describes the current office space at Manchester's acclaimed Spinningfields location as "seriously over the top", and says that they only have a licence to stay until 28th September.

Posted on: Fri, 23 Jul 2010 at 2:15 PM

Focus On: Serviced Office Space in Finland

The next stop on our world tour of serviced offices focuses on Finland, where officebroker.com helps to advertise a total of 26 buildings offering serviced office space - demonstrating that this alternative answer to the long-term leasing of conventional office space is now a truly worldwide workspace solution for businesses.

Posted on: Fri, 23 Jul 2010 at 12:16 PM

Repeat Performance on Channel 5 Talent Show for Centre Manager

Helen Davies, Business Centre Manager at serviced office group Orega's Manchester location, appeared on Channel Five's new show 'Don't Stop Believing' on Sunday 18th July as part of the 58-strong Manchester Show Choir.

As previously reported on our blog, Helen run's the company's prime business centre at Piccadilly Place, and took part in the show last Sunday which was hosted by singer Emma Bunton.

Posted on: Fri, 23 Jul 2010 at 12:11 PM

Office Video Tour Shows Off Prestigious Birmingham Centre

A landmark business centre in central Birmingham, located at Colmore Circus Queensway, has featured in an office video tour that is now available to view on the centre's profile page.

The centre is managed by one of the UK's leading serviced office providers, and offers quality space in an upscale business environment complete with many different facilities and on-site services.

Posted on: Fri, 23 Jul 2010 at 11:34 AM

Missing Green Scheme Deadline Could Lead to Fines for British Businesses

An estimated 7,500 British firms in offices and workspaces throughout the UK could face fines of at least £5,000 each according to the Environment & Energy division of the WSP Group, as the 30th September deadline to register for the UK’s new energy efficiency scheme approaches.

Posted on: Fri, 23 Jul 2010 at 10:39 AM

Birmingham Colmore Row Office Property Sold for £4.5m

A Grade II listed office property in Birmingham's Colmore Row has been bought by Real Estate Investors for a reported sum of £4.5m.

75-77 Colmore Row offers recently refurbished office space of 18,676 sq ft spread across five floors, which is currently let in full to PricewaterhouseCoopers. The company still has three and half years of a 25-year lease left to run.

Posted on: Fri, 23 Jul 2010 at 9:25 AM

Former Police Offices to be Sold

The recently vacated offices of Staffordshire Police in Baswich are to be put to market by Jones Lang LaSalle following the relocation of officers and staff to office space at the police forces new headquarters close to Stafford town centre.

Posted on: Fri, 23 Jul 2010 at 9:13 AM

Former Ethel Austin Office Space Enters Market

The former office space and warehouse facilities of failed Liverpool retail chain Ethel Austin has been put to market with a price tag of £7.5m, as the former head office is sold off after the collapse of the business earlier this year.

Posted on: Thu, 22 Jul 2010 at 2:06 PM

£190m Brindleyplace Office Deal Goes Through

The deal involving the sale of eight retail and office properties at Birmingham's Brindleyplace has been completed.

International real estate firm Hines and UK private equity investor Moorfield have collaborated to purchase the group of buildings, which were formerly owned by property investment company Brindleyplace Limited Partnership.

Posted on: Thu, 22 Jul 2010 at 10:29 AM

Temporary Office Space at Pie Factory to Remain Part of MediaCity

The Pie Factory, which was initially built as temporary office and studio space alongside the acclaimed MediaCityUK development, is to be retained having become hugely popular with local businesses.

Initially built as cheap temporary space to house production facilities, the Pie Factory - a former food production outlet - is close to full capacity as 25 out of 27 units have been let by clients.

Posted on: Thu, 22 Jul 2010 at 9:50 AM

Rising Demand for Scottish Office Space Highlighted in CB Richard Ellis Report

A report published this week by commercial property firm CB Richard Ellis has shown that the demand for office space in the first half of 2010 has strengthened, with the take-up of office in Glasgow having doubled between Jan-Jun 2010 compared to the same period in 2009.

Posted on: Thu, 22 Jul 2010 at 9:45 AM

Serviced Offices in Manchester Become Stopgap for Sublet Victim of Halliwells Collapse

A finance firm which has been forced to vacate its Manchester office space, which it had sublet from the recently collapsed Halliwells, has relocated its staff to three serviced offices in Manchester until they are able to find a new permanent office building for its 80 strong team.

Posted on: Thu, 22 Jul 2010 at 9:15 AM

Office Enquiries Fail to Build Upon Early Growth According to Commercial Property Firm King Sturge

King Sturge’s latest UK office enquiries data points toward the recent buoyancy in commercial office space demand not being sustained, with figures during Q2 10 showing a decline in both the level (-12% quarter-on-quarter) and the number (-14%) of enquiries recorded across the commercial office property network.

Posted on: Wed, 21 Jul 2010 at 5:05 PM

Sweet Office Space Secured in York

The former Terry’s Chocolate Factory in York, which was converted into business and office space earlier this year, will welcome a new occupier in the form of Surveyors and Architects firm LHL as the firm prepare to relocate its 30 strong to a new office space within the development.

Posted on: Wed, 21 Jul 2010 at 4:10 PM

Work Starts on New Co-Op Head Office in Manchester

Following several months of clearance work, construction has started on the Co-operative Group's new head office in Manchester.

The new £100m 15-storey Co-Op headquarters, which has been designed to BREEAM Excellent standards, will be built by BAM Construction.

Posted on: Wed, 21 Jul 2010 at 10:00 AM

Central London Office Space Ripe for Investors from the East

Commercial office property in Central London has shown no signs of decreasing in popularity amongst foreign investors according investment consultancy Gresham Down Capital Partners, with Chinese, Koreans and Malaysians leading the way amongst those looking to secure trophy properties.

Posted on: Wed, 21 Jul 2010 at 9:23 AM

The Girls Lead the Way in officebroker.com's New ICON Scheme

Last month, officebroker.com launched a new scheme designed to raise the bar on already high standards of service delivery and performance.

Posted on: Tue, 20 Jul 2010 at 4:29 PM

Focus on: Serviced Office Space in France

officebroker.com currently features 29 locations under a general search for France, and as the country becomes an increasingly popular destination for businesses seeking serviced office space, many more French towns and cities are expected to be added over the coming year.

Posted on: Tue, 20 Jul 2010 at 3:10 PM

The Cube Leases 50% of Available Office Space

Nearly half of the commercial office space at the controversial Cube development in Birmingham has been leased to the Highways Agency, while D&D London are also set to open a rooftop restaurant at the building which will overlook the Birmingham Skyline.

Posted on: Tue, 20 Jul 2010 at 2:51 PM

New Serviced Office Property Available in Horsham

An upscale serviced office property in Horsham has recently been added to the officebroker.com website.

The property, which is managed by a leading serviced office provider, has been fully refurbished and brought up to a high standard, providing quality business space with excellent amenities.

Posted on: Tue, 20 Jul 2010 at 11:08 AM

The Shard at London Bridge to Gain Three ”Shardettes”

Seller Property, the company behind The Shard Tower at London Bridge, are reportedly about to submit plans for the construction of three smaller towers alongside the landmark building which once completed will offer 24 floors of grade A office space.

Posted on: Tue, 20 Jul 2010 at 10:41 AM

Sparks Benefit from Avanta Charity Run

Sparks, a leading UK children's medical charity, has received over £1200 from serviced office provider Avanta.

A fourteen-strong team of employees from the London-based company did their bit on July 6th by taking part in JP Morgan’s Corporate Challenge 2010 - a 5.6km evening run through Battersea Park.

Posted on: Tue, 20 Jul 2010 at 10:36 AM

Software Firm Take New Office Space in Coventry as Part of 10th Anniversary

Acumen Business Systems (ABS), a software development company based in Coventry, have moved to a new office space in an event that marks the firms 10th anniversary.

Previously occupying office space in a unit in nearby Cash’s Lane, the new offices of the software firm will be at The Boiler House, an office building located within the Electric Wharf Development located just to the north of Coventry’s City Centre.

Posted on: Tue, 20 Jul 2010 at 9:38 AM

Video Added to Bolton Business Centre Profile

An office video tour has been added to the officebroker.com profile page of a business centre near Bolton.

The property, which is located just outside Bolton town centre, provides a range of flexible office space solutions with many key facilities on offer, ranging from meeting rooms and broadband access to reception services and admin support.

Posted on: Mon, 19 Jul 2010 at 5:08 PM

Office Space Revolution on the way in South Africa?

According to research carried out by the world’s largest supplier of serviced office space, a revolutionary new approach to commercial property costs is only months away in South Africa – with the recent recession acting as a watershed rather than a temporary glitch in the way businesses will approach the role of office space in their day-to-day business.

Posted on: Mon, 19 Jul 2010 at 3:32 PM

Bury Office Space Begins Construction

The amount of Grade A office space in Bury has taken a significant step forward following, with work beginning on a new £1.9m commercial office space development for Property Alliance Group.

Posted on: Mon, 19 Jul 2010 at 2:02 PM

Netzen Solutions Find "Perfect" New Office via officebroker.com

IT service firm Netzen Solutions, who provide IT support in Bristol and a number of other areas in the South West and London, have recently signed up to a new office in Bath with the help of officebroker.com.

Posted on: Fri, 16 Jul 2010 at 5:21 PM

Chilly Office Space Limits Productivity

According to research carried out at Cornell University, working in a cooler office space can increase the productivity of staff, cutting typing errors by as much as 44% and boosting typing output by a whopping 150%.

Posted on: Fri, 16 Jul 2010 at 5:07 PM

“Get Carter” Car Park to make way for office space as Tesco regeneration continues in Gateshead

A multi-storey car park in Gateshead, which is one of the most well-known locations from the 1971 classic film “Get Carter” starring Michael Caine, could be demolished to make way for a mix of office space, retail units and a student village following a planning application submitted Spenhill – the regeneration subsidiary of supermarket giant Tesco.

Posted on: Fri, 16 Jul 2010 at 2:21 PM

Focus on: Serviced Office Space in Saudi Arabia

Serviced office space has established a global appeal, growing from a temporary space for traveling businessmen to a tried and tested location in which to base entire businesses. While conventional space and long-term leases have long been seen as the standard workspace for businesses, the growing appeal of serviced office space cannot be ignored, with an increasing number of businesses each year turning to serviced offices as a way of reducing their property overheads in and adding flexibility to their working practices.

Posted on: Fri, 16 Jul 2010 at 12:32 PM

Serviced Office Group Bizspace Raise £1100 in Triathlon Challenge

On Sunday 11th July, two senior executives of serviced office providers Bizspace helped to raise over £1100 for children's cancer charity CLIC Sargent, by completing the tough Trentham Classic Triathlon.

Operations Director Emma Long completed the challenge in 3 hours 41 minutes, which included a one mile swim, followed by a 23 mile bike ride and then a 10km run. Head of Finance Steve Payne completed the triathlon just ahead of Emma with a time of 3 hours 19 minutes.

Posted on: Fri, 16 Jul 2010 at 10:25 AM

BBC Moves More Staff to Salford's MediaCityUK

Following the announcement that BBC Breakfast will move to MediaCityUK next year, the broadcasting corporation have today announced that more jobs are set to relocate to Salford as part of their on-going commitment to the North.

Key teams from Marketing, Communications & Audiences (MC&A) and Future Media & Technology (FM&T) have been informed that their jobs will relocate to Salford.

Posted on: Fri, 16 Jul 2010 at 10:03 AM

Office Space in West London Set for Boost

Over 270,000 sq ft of West London office space will be created when the third phase of the Stockley Park development in Hillingdon gets underway, with the first of the new office buildings possibly coming to market as early as the closing stages of 2012.

Posted on: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 at 4:49 PM

Plans for Manchester Airport Mini City “Will Happen”

Plans to turn Manchester Airport into a “mini city”, complete with office space, have taken a step forward according to comments by John Atkins, Managing Director of MAG Developments - the property and development arm of Manchester Airport Group.

Posted on: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 at 2:46 PM

IoD Stay Loyal to Serviced Offices in Manchester

The Institute of Directors (IoD), which currently reside at a Regus office property for the base of their Manchester operations, are planning to move to a new office in the city and switch to a new serviced office provider.

The organisation, Europe's largest membership organisation for business leaders, plans to move its North West location to City Tower, which is operated by serviced office company Bruntwood.

Posted on: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 at 10:57 AM

Serviced Office Centre Added in Cape Town, South Africa

A serviced office business centre located in Cape Town, South Africa, has been added to the officebroker.com website.

This prestigious centre is located in an award-winning Grade A office park development on the edge of Cape Town's CBD, at the gateway to the city.

Posted on: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 at 10:54 AM

BBC Breakfast Announce Move to MediaCityUK

The BBC have announced that their Breakfast show, currently based in London, will be moving to MediaCity in Salford Quays next year alongside other departments including BBC Sport, Children's, Learning and Radio 5 Live.

In a press release, the BBC claims that the move is aimed at building new relationships with UK audiences from their new northern base. Currently just 8% of BBC programmes are made in the north despite a quarter of all licence fee payers living in the region.

Posted on: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 at 10:20 AM

Mixed Fortunes for Office Space Market in Key UK Cities

The market for office space in Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds has remained steady according to research from commercial property experts Drivers Jonas Deloitte, indicating a period of stability in the office space market of these key UK cities following the declines reported during the UK’s recession.

Posted on: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 at 10:14 AM

Serviced Office Manager Takes Part in New Channel 5 Show

Helen Davies, manager of Orega's serviced office centre at Piccadilly Place in Manchester, is taking part in a new Channel Five talent show this Sunday, 'Don't Stop Believing'.

As part of the 68-strong Manchester Show Choir, Helen and her fellow choir members have already beaten off competition from 3,000 other acts to take part in this Sunday's show, which is hosted by former Spice Girl Emma Bunton.

Posted on: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 at 9:43 AM

officebroker.com's Tom Stiles to Open NME Lovebox Festival

Tom Stiles, Account Manager at officebroker.com, will be playing the main stage at NME Breakthrough's Lovebox festival this Friday (16th July).

The band were selected to open the festival following a tough competition set up by NME Breakthrough, which saw Tom and the rest of the Matt Henshaw band battle it out against 1500 other entrants.

Posted on: Wed, 14 Jul 2010 at 3:45 PM

Is Facebook More Important than Google?

In May, social media websites received more internet visits than search engines in the UK.

The social media sector accounted for 11.88% of online visits, while the search engine sector trailed marginally with 11.33% - reportedly the first time ever that social networks have overtaken search engines in the UK popularity stakes.

Posted on: Wed, 14 Jul 2010 at 11:43 AM

Edinburgh Office Sold to Maritime Services Firm

King Sturge, a supplier of property services in the commercial property market including the industrial, office and retail & leisure sectors, has announced the sale of a 3,084 sq ft office building in Edinburgh and indicated that the office space market within the city is enjoying strong demand.

Posted on: Wed, 14 Jul 2010 at 11:28 AM

Manchester Office Space Final Addition to Green Property Fund

Climate Change Capital (CCC), the environmental investment manager and advisory group, have confirmed that the purchase of an office building in Manchester this week will be the final addition to its property fund - having now fully invested the fund.

Posted on: Wed, 14 Jul 2010 at 10:49 AM

New Video Tour of Burnley Business Centre

A video tour of a business centre on the northern outskirts of Burnley has recently been added to the officebroker.com website.

officebroker.com launched video tours early in 2009, as a way to help prospective clients gain a more in-depth view of the office they are interested in, prior to organising a personal tour.

Posted on: Wed, 14 Jul 2010 at 10:21 AM

The officebroker.com Team Expands Again!

Although currently a little too young for employment, baby Grace - daughter of Training & Development Manager Fiona Spruce - already has a career ready and waiting for her with officebroker.com!

Grace, who was born a week ago today (Tuesday 6th July), is sporting the officebroker.com logo on her new babygro and hat, which definitely deserved a photograph on the Blog.

Posted on: Tue, 13 Jul 2010 at 4:41 PM

New Office Properties in Finland Added to officebroker.com

Two new serviced office properties in Finland, located in the capital of Helsinki, have been added to the officebroker.com website.

Helsinki – Asiakkaankatu

Helsinki – Pitkänsillanranta

Posted on: Tue, 13 Jul 2010 at 1:40 PM

New MoD London Office uses Horse Power to Go Green

When the King's Troop move to their new base and head office in South London in 2011, the headquarters will be powered by the manure of 170 horses.

The animals, from the famous Royal Horse Artillery, will be stabled at the new base in Woolwich, and the manure collected will be formed into pellets and used as bio-fuel to power the entire base.

Posted on: Tue, 13 Jul 2010 at 9:49 AM

Historic Yorkshire Property from BBC Drama Series up for Auction

A Grade II listed former woollen mill, which was used in the BBC's production of the Marlborough Mills drama series, is going under the hammer for an estimated £1.75m.

Dalton Mills currently provides business space to a number of local firms, offers 53,000 sq ft along with a further 157,000 sq ft which is vacant and ready for conversion.

Posted on: Tue, 13 Jul 2010 at 9:21 AM

Manchester Office Sold to Climate Change Capital

An office block in Manchester, which is located next to a serviced office space advertised through officebroker.com, has been sold for £45m according to a report on the North West section of thebuinessdesk.com.

Posted on: Mon, 12 Jul 2010 at 4:31 PM

UK Office Market Takes First Steps to Recovery in 2010

The National Office Report 2010 from commercial property consultants Lambert Smith Hampton has reported that the “UK office market took its first steps towards recovery after take-up reached 5.5m sq ft in Q1 2010, already a third of the total amount transacted in the whole of 2009.”

Posted on: Mon, 12 Jul 2010 at 3:55 PM

Mammoth Squeezes into MediaCityUK Office Space

MediaCityUK have filled yet more office space following the arrival of Mammoth Graphics, a design firm who have chosen The Pie Factory as the location for their first office outside of London.

Posted on: Mon, 12 Jul 2010 at 2:59 PM

Yell Switches to Flexible Office Space and Saves £1.5m a Year

Yell, the international directories business that runs well-known UK brands including Yellow Pages, Yell.com and 118 24 7, are closing their 18 satellite offices in favour of a more flexible option.

In a move that will reportedly save the firm £1.5million a year, Yell's team of 700 on-the-road consultants will be able to use Regus' 140 centres throughout the UK on an "as-needed basis".

Posted on: Mon, 12 Jul 2010 at 2:36 PM

officebroker.com See Orange in Aftermath of World Cup Final

Despite the Netherlands' defeat at the hands of European Champions Spain, who last night took the spoils in South Africa's 2010 World Cup Final, staff at officebroker.com's head office saw orange this morning as they turned up for work on an otherwise grey Monday morning.

Over the weekend, the corridors at officebroker.com's head office near Tamworth - based in a historic former cotton mill - were transformed, and painted in the company's distinctive orange colours.

Posted on: Mon, 12 Jul 2010 at 12:04 PM

Mayor of Walsall Opens The Old Foundry for Business

The Old Foundry in Caldmore, near Walsall – a 200-year old property which has recently undergone a £1m refurbishment – has now opened for business following an official opening ceremony.

As reported on our blog, the property has undergone a transformation to provide office space for small businesses, along with supportive services designed to help start-ups get the help and backing they need to grow.

Posted on: Mon, 12 Jul 2010 at 12:00 PM

Public Sector Cuts could Impact Birmingham's Office Market

Research released at CBRE's recent Midlands Market Insight Seminar claims that Birmingham's conventional office market is "over-reliant" on the public sector.

CBRE's figures show that 50% of office take-up during 2009 went to the public sector, but in the wake of the coalition Government's intention to make dramatic cuts to the sector's budget, this trend is now deemed unsustainable.

Posted on: Mon, 12 Jul 2010 at 10:05 AM

Demand for West Midlands Office Space Continues

Office space in the West Midlands 223 serviced offices has continued to attract growing interest and take-up in the second financial quarter of 2010 according to research published today by the UK’s largest serviced office space brokerage firm officebroker.com.

Posted on: Fri, 09 Jul 2010 at 2:45 PM

London’s TechHub Offices to Produce the Next Google?

New desk and office space in London for small technology firms is being dubbed as the next Silicon Valley.

Old Street in London is expected to produce the next Google or Spotify, according to a report by ThisisLondon. The area has already been billed the "silicon roundabout" and is home to dozens of small internet firms.

Posted on: Fri, 09 Jul 2010 at 1:53 PM

Free Office Video for Business Centre of the Month Winner

A free video has been awarded to the officebroker.com Business Centre of the Month winner for June, which was added to their online profile page earlier this month.

June's winner was Stevenage-based Business & Technology Centre (btc), who were awarded the free video as part of their winning package. They also received additional advertising from officebroker.com in the form of a press release and a link on the homepage, a certificate, and entry into the Business Centre of the Year award.

Posted on: Fri, 09 Jul 2010 at 11:14 AM

Office Furniture Company Settles in at New Wirral Office

The Desk Centre, an office furniture company that was saved from insolvency last year, has reversed its fortunes and is now looking forward to healthy growth at its new office in Bromborough.

The company has signed a new lease for at the property, taking on 10,000 sq ft of warehouse and office space.

Posted on: Fri, 09 Jul 2010 at 9:27 AM

Carlyle Group Buys Six London Office Properties

Six office properties in central London, which were formerly part of the White Tower scheme, have been bought by property developer Carlyle Group for a total of £671m.

The buildings compromise a total of 1.6m sq ft and provide office space throughout the City of London and in Chiswick, West London.

Posted on: Thu, 08 Jul 2010 at 4:05 PM

The Guardian Cuts its Carbon Footprint through Greener Offices

The Guardian News & Media cut its carbon footprint in the financial year ending March 2010 by 3,290 tonnes of CO2. The announcement comes after the media giant wielded the axe over its energy-sapping operations, which included emissions caused by its London offices.

Other Guardian operations that have been successfully 'greened' include print sites, business travel and company car use.

Posted on: Thu, 08 Jul 2010 at 3:34 PM

Interest in Serviced Office Space in London Continues But Uptake Declines

In a report published today by officebroker.com, the UK’s leading broker of serviced office space, it has been shown that the service office space market in Greater London has seen enquiry levels increase by 22% in the second quarter of 2010 compared to the same period in the previous year.

Posted on: Thu, 08 Jul 2010 at 1:54 PM

St Peter's Square Construction Moves a Step Closer

One St Peter's Square, a planned 270,000 sq ft BREEAM Excellent office property in the heart of Manchester, is close to appointing a building contractor to start construction.

Greater Manchester Property Venture Fund (GMPVF) and its joint venture development partner, Argent - who is also behind the acclaimed Brindleyplace scheme in Birmingham - are seeking a contractor to start construction of the property with the aim of completing by early 2014.

Pictured: Midlands Hotel, Central Library and Town Hall at St Peter's Square, Manchester.

Posted on: Thu, 08 Jul 2010 at 11:06 AM

Serviced Office Review: Central London Q2 2010

The UK’s leading broker of serviced office space officebroker.com has today released the Q2 2010 instalment of its Serviced Office Review Series, marking the 3rd consecutive outing for this well received body of industry research.

Posted on: Wed, 07 Jul 2010 at 4:51 PM

Space Snapped Up at Leeds' Grade A Office Development

10 South Parade, the first new speculative office development in Leeds city centre this year, has received a third agreement for take-up of its Grade A office space.

Earlier this year, employee benefits and pension services provider Xafinity Consulting agreed to occupy 8,200 sq ft of office. They have just agreed to take-up a further 1,200 sq ft of office space at the scheme, which is owned and managed by Wilton Developments.

Posted on: Wed, 07 Jul 2010 at 2:38 PM

Video Tour Shows Off Renovation of Victorian Cotton Mill

A former Victorian cotton mill in Burnley town centre, which has been refurbished to provide high-quality serviced office space, has featured in a video tour that is now available to view on officebroker.com.

Posted on: Wed, 07 Jul 2010 at 1:56 PM

Heron Tower to Secure First Tenant?

Heron Tower, a planned 46-story 755ft skyscraper which will become the tallest in the City of London, has reportedly secured its first tenant in Chicago-based law firm McDermott Will & Emery LLP.

The information is as yet unconfirmed. However, according to recent speculation, the US company are expected to occupy the eighth and ninth floors of the tower.

Posted on: Wed, 07 Jul 2010 at 9:38 AM

Tower 42: Rich List Billionaire Eyes London City's Tallest Skyscraper

Tower 42 - the tallest in the City of London - could have found a buyer in Chinese Estates Group, a property investment firm chaired by Hong Kong-based billionaire Joseph Lau.

The firm have reportedly entered into talks to buy the former NatWest tower, and recent reports state that Chinese Estates Group won a three-month auction to secure the landmark near the asking price of £300m.

Posted on: Tue, 06 Jul 2010 at 11:07 AM

Refurbished Period Office Property Ticks All the Right Boxes

A period property in Coleshill has recently undergone a full refurbishment, and new photos of the impressive building have just been added to the officebroker.com profile.

The property, which is Grade II listed, has been carefully refurbished to ensure that many key period features have remained intact, including large sash windows and an impressive hall with antique Minton tiled flooring.

Posted on: Tue, 06 Jul 2010 at 10:09 AM

Morrisons Supermarket Takes Bradford Office Space

Morrisons Supermarket has taken 11,000 sq. ft. of office space at Aquarius House, a high quality office property situated on the Leeds/ Bradford border and within the city in which the national supermarket chain was first founded in 1899.

Posted on: Tue, 06 Jul 2010 at 9:28 AM

Kraft to Cut Three-Quarters of Cadbury Head Office Jobs

Kraft Foods, the new US owner of Cadbury, is set to cut 120 head office jobs - resulting in almost three-quarters of the Uxbridge office's staff becoming redundant.

Reports suggest that Kraft has begun a redundancy consultation with staff based in Uxbridge who work in management and administration. If the plans go ahead, just 45 of the current 165 staff-force will keep their jobs.

Posted on: Mon, 05 Jul 2010 at 4:38 PM

New Photos of Former Spinning Mill Added to officebroker.com

A group of former spinning and wool mills, which date back to the 18th century and have been stylishly converted into serviced office space, have received an update to the photos currently located on officebroker.com.

The properties, which are located on the banks of the River Wharfe, boast a superb rural location in the attractive market town of Otley.

Posted on: Mon, 05 Jul 2010 at 12:01 PM

Set of BBC Drama to be Auctioned by Commercial Property Firm King Sturge

Commercial Property consultants King Sturge are to sell Dalton Mills, a Grade II listed property used as the location of “Marlborough Mills” in the BBC’s North and South drama series and home to serviced offices available through officebroker.com

Posted on: Mon, 05 Jul 2010 at 11:26 AM

Serviced Office Space– officebroker.com prepares for third instalment of Serviced Office Review Series.

officebroker.com will this week begin compiling the third instalment of its Serviced Office Review Series which offers detailed analysis of activity with the serviced offices industry in the UK – an industry which provides office space to thousands of businesses ranging from start-ups and SMEs right through to international corporate companies.

Posted on: Mon, 05 Jul 2010 at 10:29 AM

BT Office Property Bought by Islamic Bank, Gatehouse

Amid a flurry of property purchases in Yorkshire, BT's regional office property in Leeds, One Sovereign Street, has been bought by UK Islamic bank Gatehouse for a reported £40m.

The bank reportedly bought the portion of real estate on behalf of Royal Mail Pension Fund, which represents their first acquisition of commercial property in Yorkshire.

Posted on: Mon, 05 Jul 2010 at 9:53 AM

BAM Construction Win Contract to Build Co-Op Head Office in Manchester

It has been announced that the new £100m 15-storey Co-Op headquarters, which has been designed to BREEAM Excellent standards, will be built by BAM Construction.

The work is due to start next month, and upon completion it is due to be one of the most sustainable office properties in Europe.

Posted on: Fri, 02 Jul 2010 at 3:02 PM

RBS Sell £15bn of Property a Year

Analysts believe that RBS, the Royal Bank of Scotland, are set to sell £15bn of property assets a year.

The move comes following a discussion in which Rory Cullinan - head of RBS' non-core division - warned that the bank has "high" commercial property impairments, particularly in Ireland. Commercial property reportedly makes up 24% of the firm's 'non-core' division which is equivalent to around £62bn.

Posted on: Fri, 02 Jul 2010 at 2:36 PM

Brindleyplace Sale Confirmed

As reported on our blog earlier this week, the sale of eight office and retail buildings in Birmingham's Brindleyplace is going ahead and has been confirmed this morning.

The office properties within the deal are units Three, Four, Five, Six and Nine Brindleyplace, along with three buildings that are currently home to Costa Coffee, Ikon Gallery and Crescent Theatre. The sale also includes a 903-space multi-storey car park.

Posted on: Fri, 02 Jul 2010 at 9:41 AM

The Shard: "An exciting place to live, work and play"

The long-awaited addition to London's evolving skyline, The Shard - officially titled Shard London Bridge, but also known as the Shard of Glass or 32 London Bridge - will tower above the capital's other skyscrapers at a dizzy 1,017 ft.

The glass property is replacing Southwark Towers, a 1976 office building, and is set to become one of the tallest buildings in Europe upon its planned completion in May 2012.

Posted on: Thu, 01 Jul 2010 at 2:34 PM

City of London Office Gains 5-Star Client Reviews

A serviced office located on Lloyds Avenue in the City of London, just a stone's throw from Fenchurch Street train station, has received no less than six shining reviews from clients who have toured or rented space at the centre since February.

Aside from a superb location in the heart of London's financial district, with views of The Gherkin and other iconic landmarks from the property's roof terrace, the centre offers clients a range of excellent business services and top-class facilities.

Posted on: Thu, 01 Jul 2010 at 12:19 PM

The btc in Stevenage Scoop June's Business Centre of the Month Award

The Business & Technology Centre (btc) in Stevenage have scooped officebroker.com's Business Centre of the Month award for June 2010.

The award scheme, which was first launched by officebroker.com in April this year, celebrates business centres that show outstanding service and contribution to the serviced office industry.

Posted on: Thu, 01 Jul 2010 at 10:45 AM