When your home office becomes too small for your business

Is it the right time for you to move your business out of your spare bedroom?

Running your own business from home can be fantastic. But there often comes a time when people running businesses from their homes begin to wonder whether they should move their office from their spare bedroom into a proper office space.

Of the many issues that these thoughts can throw up, one of the key concerns can be: ‘is it the right time to move?’

How do you know when to make the move from a home office to a professional office space?

It can be a tough decision to make, but there a few indicators that can help you to decide if the time is right for you.

Is your home office hampering the growth of your business?

As companies begin to increase in size and prosperity, many outgrow the spare bedrooms that give birth to them.

You may need to hire more staff, hold regular client meetings, take extensive deliveries of stock or supplies, store these increased amounts of stock and supplies, present a more professional image as your client base grows and you need to pitch to larger more commercial clients, or just feel that having an office that isn’t based in your home will help you to attract the right calibre of staff to help you grow. You might even feel that working from home is beginning to hamper your creativity and productivity. If any of these apply to you and your business, then maybe it’s time to start looking for a new office.

Are family issues forcing you out of your home office?

Maybe you’re expecting a new arrival. Perhaps you’re going stir-crazy, getting lonely and need to leave the house more often. It could be a simple matter of finding too many distractions around the house. Your business could be beginning to take over the whole house and cause arguments with your family. You might be struggling to switch off and feeling that you’re never out of work. Whatever the case, these are all good reasons to decide your home office has become too small for your business.

Whatever the reason that you’re considering moving out of your home office into a larger more professional office suite, once you have made the decision, you have to be careful to ensure that you move into the right office space for your business.

Finding the right office space

It’s important that you pick the right office solution for your growing business.

Since your business has outgrown your home office, it isn’t too big a stretch of the imagination to think that you may well continue to grow and need to upscale the office space you rent after a time as well.

Make sure that whatever agreement you enter into allows you to up and downsize easily and at short notice. This way you have flexible office space that will continue to meet your business’ needs, whatever happens.

It’s also important to consider the location of the offices that you’re thinking of moving into. Are they close enough to your home that they don’t add a considerable commute to your daily routine? Are they in a location that will attract the sort of staff you want to employ?

In addition to this, are they bright and airy offices that allow you to decorate as you choose? Is the office you’re looking at going to be affordable? Does it come with added extras such as, meeting and boardrooms you can hire, a communal manned reception and foyer that can handle your calls and gives your guests a good impression?

These are all things to consider when looking at which is the right office for your SME to grow from.

State-of-the-art serviced offices

Whatever type of business you run, if you’re considering a move from your home office to a purpose built office space, then Business First could be the answer you’ve been looking for.

Business First’s office suites are situated in modern, purpose built business centres and whatever your business does, we’re confident we can offer an affordable, flexible lease on an office space that will cater to your needs.

Some of our existing clients include: beauty therapists, laser clinics, make-up artists, fitness instructors, web designers, architects and even the NHS.

So whatever your business does, give Business First a call and find out how we can help you take the step from your bedroom to the perfect office for your small business.