5 Tips To Setting Up Your First Office

Whatever your business idea is, you need a home base. A headquarters. A place to seed ideas and grow your business.

At Storage Vault, we’re smitten by space and how to make the most of it.

We teamed up with a few fresh-faced startups to discuss how they built a beautiful office space and now we’re ready to share those tips with you.

So, read on and get ready to create your perfect office.

1. Does it need to be an office?

There’s a place and time for everything, and investing in a corporate office in the early stages of your start-up isn’t always necessary.

Here’s Alessia Sannazzaro from Code and Wander on why they rethought investing in an office.

“If you’re currently building a product from your garage, stay in the garage. Your top priority should be creating an amazing product that people want.”

When your business starts taking off, you can start out by renting a business storage space and then eventually move to a larger office.

After five years of staring at the wall in a small boxy office, Ginger Horticulture’s Jonathan realised that he didn’t actually need an office.

“By not having a office, I have been able to work in some very cool spaces. I’ve proofread packaging by a pool in France. Edited photographs on a patio in Greece and done sales calls from the North of Denmark.”

What you need is a place where you can work. A place where you can get stuff done! If that’s a traditional office, then cool. If it’s a beach chair, that’s great too!

Just don’t sink hundreds of pounds a month into a shabby box just because you think you have to.

2. What type of workspace suits your business?

Once you’ve figured out the logistics behind the grand decision, it’s time to think about what type of workspace would suit your business and your budget.

If you need an office buzz to motivate and inspire you, renting a desk at a co-working space or an office at an incubator might be right up your alley.

Coworking spaces and incubators pool the resources of startups and micro-businesses, granting you access to a pool of resources that you might not be able to afford.

Matt from KYO Digital highlighted how essential it was to get the basics right for them.

“You need a quiet meeting room, an area where you can take phone and Skype calls and a separate space where people can enjoy their lunch and chill out”

Rachel from Koru Kids told us that they prefer to spend their money on better things than office space:

“We work out of a free coworking space. It’s not beautiful, but it is friendly, centrally located and most importantly, it’s free! We can find so many better things to spend money on than office space.”

3. Improve Productivity

We asked our tenants at CoVault for their top tips when managing time and getting down to business. Here are some of their top tips:

“Being productive doesn’t mean working 9-5 voll gas. Breaks are healthy, if anything you should practise your break skills.”

“Cut pop-ups. Push and pop-up notifications are essential for two professions. One; on-call heart surgeons. Two; Wall Street stock traders. For the rest of us, they’re nothing but distractions.”

“Go on that run. Working out stimulates the release of endorphins – and sets you up for a happier life.”

Read our full article 7 Proven Productivity Tips For Getting Stuff Done

4. Create a Welcoming Environment

When you’re starting out, you need to actively work on setting your company culture.

According to ThriveMap culture is shaped through daily work rituals, habits and norms. All of these contribute to your company’s unique personality.

Laura, Happiness Manager at KeyAGENT told us that their recipe to a strong company culture is combining learning and happiness

“Buy weird toys for the office, give people a welcome party at the end of their first day, hold wacky socials that encourage actual friendships to form.”

Don’t forget to celebrate. When you’ve found an office that suits you, celebrate. When you’ve had a good day, celebrate. We often forget to celebrate the progress that we’ve made because we’re so focused on the end goal. Celebrate all your achievements, small or big.

5. Think about the Interior Design

What your office needs, depends on your company. But here are some general tips that’ll apply to most.

First things first, you’re gonna need some good desk chairs. Here’s Giorgio Cassella from tuition startup Tutora on why the right chair underpins a brilliant business.

“Take your time to pick out some super-comfy chairs. When you and your team are putting in all the hours under the sun, a comfy bum will keep everyone happy!”

Sort your technology. You need computers, a printer, WiFi and probably loads of other stuff. Don’t scrimp and save on the essentials. Invest in the right tech and give your team the tools they need to do a brilliant job.

Zen-space. No matter how small your work- space is, try to set up a corner where people can lounge! This will be brilliant for catch ups and having lunch.

Splash some paint on the walls, and throw up some wall art. Your office should be inspiring and encouraging.

Here’s Giorgio again on how to create an inspiring and creative workspace.

“Make sure you have an area dedicated to scribbling. Whether this is a flipchart, whiteboard or just drawing on the windows, having somewhere to get visual with your ideas is essential.

“Bonus tip! If you’re struggling, grab some masking tape and chalkboard paint, mark out a square on the wall and get started on a DIY chalkboard.”

Is your office storage limited? We offer a wide range of flexible storage units, from 25sqft to 500sqft. Whatever your requirements are, we’re confident that we’ve got a perfect space for you.

Give us a call today on 0141 887 1000 or email us at [email protected] to hear more about how we can help you