Do You Need A Physical Office For Your Start-Up?

 

When you think about growing your startup into a successful business, you likely imagine an office full of people working, holding meetings, having brainstorming sessions, and casual chats in the kitchen. However, this traditional office scene is starting to change, and it is now much easier for startups to thrive without having a physical office space.

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Lots of companies have decided to get rid of their office space altogether. Some businesses wouldn’t be able to survive without an office, but some can manage perfectly well without one. Does your startup need an office or would you be better off investing your money elsewhere, such as into automation parts like an SMC pneumatic part builder. 

 

The Benefits Of An Office

There are some benefits to having an office for a startup business:

• Corporate headquarters. If you have an office, this can help you to seem more legitimate and could help you to earn the respect and loyalty of your clients. It shows that you are serious about your work, and might let you gain customers or employees through foot traffic. 
• Face-to-face interactions. Some businesses find that face-to-face communications are more effective for them than other forms of contact, in part due to things like body language, especially in a business. An office allows you to do this. 
• If you invest in an office space, you could be more likely to invest in your business. You will feel proud to come to work and might work harder when you are at the office. 
• Some people find they are more productive when they work in an office where they is less distraction than at home and find that they can maintain a better balance between work and home when the two places are separate places. 

 

Why Ditch The Office?

Despite these benefits to having an office, there are also some benefits to getting rid of the office too. 

• The average cost of office space is usually high. For most companies, even startups, this can cost a lot of money each month. As a new business, you can probably think of lots of plenty of things that you would rather spend money on instead of spending it on an office when you run almost everything online.
• Team locations. If you have a wider net for recruiting talent, then there is no guarantee that all of your team members will come from the same area. If your team lives all over the place, then it is smarter for them to work from home, rather than in an office. 
• If your startup is based around a digital product, then why put the time and money into finding a location, negotiating a lease, and maintaining an office? 
• Some people find that remote work allows them to be more productive, and some people are a lot happier working from home than they are in an office. 

 

Both options can work well for a start-up. Weigh up the pros and cons for your business.