Add flexible space to flexible working as a success factor for a start-up

I’ve been doing some background research on the location issues facing start-ups, as well as considering some of the location issues facing our business. Then I came across a rather unfortunate piece of writing in one of the new AS Business textbooks that brought the issue home to me.

You find this gem on page 53 of one of the new AS Business textbooks:

“Space:
Although a new firm will not be concerned with expansion in the early years, if it is successful it may need to increase the scale of its operations in the long-term”.

It sounds good. But when you read that sentence carefully it is complete nonsense. “Not concerned with expansion in the early years”? Rubbish. Every start-up I’ve worked with has harboured ambitions, and some even planned from the beginning, to expand into greater space. The need for extra space, different space, more flexible space hits a start-up hard as soon as it gets past the initial survival stage.

And how do you define long-term? The textbook ducks the issue. You might be forgiven for thinking in terms of years, maybe 3-5 years? Maybe longer?

I think the start-up perspective is shorter-term than that. The start-up entrepreneur thinks from day-to-day, week-to-week. The location plan might stretch 6-12 months ahead, but more often than not the start-up finds that extra space is needed right now.

To understand that better, think about the location that most start-ups in the UK use. The humble back bedroom. Or kitchen table.

A recent survey by BT Business reported that home-based businesses make up nearly a quarter of the UK workforce. Even more interestingly, the research also revealed that 60% of all new businesses are now started at home.

Many of those home-start businesses will say where they are. Many will fail. However, for the successful, after 6-12 months thoughts soon turn to moving out. Extra office space is required for all those computers; perhaps a more formal and professional office location is needed to help win more business. Hiring staff, even part-time, is tough if you plan on inviting them to work in your home all day.

So the home-start entrepreneur soon looks for flexible space. A shared office somewhere near. Perhaps a short-leased warehouse unit that combines basic office accommodation and storage facilities.

A few months pass and a couple more staff are employed and the stock levels are rising. Cue more space required. Maybe another office, or moving further down the industrial park to a larger unit.

The truth is that, for successful start-ups, the business location is a endlessly moving target. What matters is obtaining suitable, cost-effective and, above all, flexible space that expands to all the business to grow.

So, for start-ups and location, think space to grow in the short-term.

And don’t believe everything you read in the business textbooks