Florida is well know as a business friendly state. Lower taxes, pristine beaches and year-round warm temperatures, home of the Florida Derby, there are many reasons to do business in Florida. Just look at these successful startups that are based here.
So now that things are progressing nicely for your business, it's time to start looking for an office. But as a startup your need specific things, including flexibility and affordability until business takes off and you can expand. But in the beginning what are your options.
Lets find out.
Work space options for startups
Home office
Home offices usually do not disappoint. This is how a lot of startups have been born, generating ideas and serving potential customers using personal equipment. With so many modifications and technology available, you can disguise you are working in a real office for years.
This arrangement helps you stand on your two feet before making a permanent switch. Prior to that, you can set up local mailboxes, hire virtual receptionist and have arrangements to use local conference halls for a certain fee for clients meetings.
For best performance, have a well planned schedule and follow it to the letter. Let those around you, family and friends, know that you have to keep structured work time to guarantee success.
This however does not mean you have to seclude yourself, you can join local networking groups which will help market yourself as you will be able to spread word about your business. Giant organizations such as HP and Apple attest to this, they all began in a garage.
Co-working space
These are open office spaces designed to help staff members work together away from home. When the staff work together, they become a strong team aimed to solve problems rather than working in a secluded office.
Co-working fees are more affordable making startup entrepreneur introduce themselves in the market with much ease. Some allow you to lease for specific numbers of days in a month rather than committing yourself to daily use. Depending on the lifestyle of the city you are in, the landlord or the office, your membership may include access to conference halls, dedicated desks, office events, social amenities such as gym among other perks.
The other advantage is the ease with which you can interact with other startup founders. This will help you create a business network hence grow each other. Some co-working centers have designated special events which host networking conferences and workshops to help create a strong bond and encourage the sense of community among its members.
Virtual offices
When I heard the phrase 'virtual office' I couldn't help but think it was the most weirdest thing I have heard for quite some time. How could you possibly operate in a non-existing space? Virtual office spaces are valuable and clever option for startups especially if you are operating away from home, especially with Florida being a virtual office hotspot.
This arrangement gives the prestige to present yourself as well-established organization operating in renowned offices, which is good for your image. Ideally, virtual offices provide you with a fixed business address, a full time receptionist who can receive clients for you in your absence, receive your mail and forward it onwards, access to an executive office suite when needed as well as conference rooms for if you want to host meetings in a professional environment.
The main benefit of a virtual office is the flexibility to have access to professional office services as you need them and not paying for services that you do not need full time.
Office rental
Instead of leasing an empty room and furnish it using your own money, you can rent a fully furnished office reducing the amount of money you need to invest in a new office. When you use an all-inclusive space for rent, you gain full access and advantage that used to come with traditional office space. Some of the perks include receptionist services, IT services, furnishings conference rooms and other amenities available.
Office rental offers you great flexibility and can change in accordance with the current market situation as you are not greatly committed or required to make heavy investments.
Rental offices will work greatly for you as you are not worried about repair bills, taxes, lengthy leases agreements or maintenance costs.
It also offers you an opportunity to test the waters before fully understand committing yourself and moving into the next phase. Nonetheless, you would want an office which suits the culture you want to grow. Here are some of the things you need to consider prior to any commitments.
Understand how much space you need for now and if there will be enough for future because obviously you are not going to be stagnant.
Are there amenities which would support your business around the place you want to rent.
Does the structure of the office suits the culture you want to develop.
Come up with a backup plan in the event you may need to retreat.
Small Business Incubators
If you want to set up your own office or maybe you want to fully plunge your business into the market by moving away from your home office or you have outgrown your coworkers, you can contact business development groups or your local government for information and advice about the availability of small business incubators in your locality.
The main goal of business incubator programs is to provide you with flexible office space in a combination with services such as mentorship to help you grow. The program offers you discount which you basically use to expand your business not only benefiting yourself but the economy in general.
Cheaper rates among other favorable entrepreneurial terms make business incubators the best option for your growing business. Check out this list of incubators in Florida.
Leased Offices
Just like rental offices, leased space come with a number of advantages such as fully furnished space, professional services and flexibility. The only difference is the length of the agreement. With rental offices, it can be a month or a year. On the other hand, leasing can be in between 3 and 5 years or more.
Why you should consider executive business suites instead of commercial offices
Initially, startup CEOs and mentors believed that since your business is going to grow, you should start with a commercial space to cater for such developments in the future. However, they were greatly mistaken. This section offers you full insight on why it is better to go for executive business suites rather than a full bore commercial office.
Flexibility
The desire to grow quickly has been the death knell for many startups in the market. Without first-hand skills, it becomes very difficult to manage a project which undergoes sporadic expansion. However, office suites offer you the flexibility allowing you to expand or downsize slowly when need arises. Additionally, executive business premises have additional rooms you can rent instead of moving to a whole new place which may result to the downfall of your business.
Cost
The cost of executive business suites is much cheaper than commercial office space. Being a startup present capital issues as you have not built on your credit worthiness. Growth and success may take long to achieve than how you think, there is no need to spend money you don't have. Start with an executive business suite and when the need to move to the next level arises, then you can fully move in a commercial office.
Equipment and furniture
Renting a commercial space implies you have to move in with your own support facilities such as furniture, office tools such as computers, that the costs can add up very quickly!
However, office suites provide you with all the support facilities you need starting from furniture to the little things that you often forget to budget for like a waste bin, all included in the monthly lease payments. This reduces the amount you have to spend on furnishing the office. You could Channel the capital directly into your business which increases your scale of operation.
Administrative help
As a startup, you will need professional personnel to attend to issues such as taking massages, receiving visitors producing documents and so on. Having such employees increases your monthly expenditure. However, executive office suites provide you with such services starting from a receptionist, mail sorting to event planning.
Upkeep
Most Executive business suites include maintenance and repair in their monthly lease terms. This implies you will not have to hire someone to clean up your office or repair some broken table. This offers advantage of scale which reduces the overhead costs.
Final verdict
There are several different options for an office for your startup. Choose the one that best suits your needs and where you will feel most comfortable. If you are looking for short term office lease in the Hallandale and Aventura area then contact us at 221 building to find out more about their executive office suites.