How to Decide on a New Office Location for Your Startup
Choosing the right office space is about more than the building itself. Seven real criteria for picking the right location for your startup.
For startups, choosing the right office space is more than just finding the right physical attributes and amenities. Your office location is just as important as any other factor to consider. Here are the criteria worth weighing when deciding where your startup's next office should actually be.
A startup's office location should weigh seven real factors beyond the building itself: startup community, neighborhood character, transit access, general accessibility, proximity to customers, proximity to investors and strategic partners, and the site's technological infrastructure. A methodical, organized approach to these criteria gets you far closer to the ideal location than evaluating buildings alone.
1. Startup Community
Finding office space in an already existing startup or local business community can significantly improve networking efforts immediately upon moving. That networking can pay substantial dividends, both literally and figuratively, down the road.
2. Neighborhood Characteristics
Nearby businesses and attractions matter when employees work long hours and rely on your office's proximity to other amenities. Restaurants within walking distance or a short drive are especially valuable for lunch and team bonding. Bars, nightlife, and other recreational attractions nearby can also be genuinely useful for attracting young talent and entertaining clients.
3. Close to Highways, Major Roads, and Public Transportation
Commute times matter no matter the size of the business. Heavy traffic creates real stress and expense for staff, and it's worth factoring into delivery and shipping cost projections too. Nearby public transportation gives employees, clients, and customers a genuine alternative.
4. Accessibility
Your office should be easy to find, both the drive and the general neighborhood. You'll need ample parking for employees and visitors alike, along with bike racks or storage where relevant. If much of your staff lives in a concentrated area, walking distance from that area to the office is worth considering too.
5. Proximity to Customers
Depending on your business, it might be smart to find an office in a high foot-traffic area. There can also be a real strategic advantage in being close to complementary businesses, like a health food store near a gym. These needs vary by business, so weigh this against your own specific model.
6. Investors and Strategic Partners
If you're actively searching for investors or strategic partners, make sure your space is genuinely easy for visitors to reach. When funding is a particular focus, having a community of investors nearby can be a valuable network to rely on.
7. Technological Infrastructure
Make sure the office space has the framework your team actually needs, including fiber-optic lines or other high-speed internet access, a particular concern for most tech-based startups. This is easy to overlook during a tour but genuinely costly to fix after signing.
Choosing the right space for your startup depends on careful consideration of the many details involved. Take a methodical, organized approach using these criteria, and you're one step closer to finding the ideal office space.
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