
MIH TEAM
19/04/25
Fresh Thinking
020 3637 7968
info@mihproperty.co.uk020 3637 7968
Retail, office and business spaces as well as the leisure and industrial markets are witnessing and responding to significant changes in behaviour. Whilst commuters are returning to the Capital in their droves, (give or take a few temporary retreats thanks to Omicron et Al), the new working model demands a flexible approach.
As the workforce is tending now to be based part time in the office and part time at home, businesses are reviewing their needs and either downsizing to smaller footprints with a greater emphasis on flexibility and hot-desking, or alternatively changing their existing layouts to provide a more individualised space. The latter approach aims to make working environments healthier, more comfortable, and more appealing.
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The problem with open offices, however, is that most workers don’t like them. Research has found workers in open offices experience more uncontrolled interactions, higher levels of stress and lower levels of concentration and motivation.”
Source: Forbes
To attract and keep workers (especially the younger generations) in the workplace, it’s now beneficial to enhance the surroundings. Intimate booths, breakout rooms, sofas and plants and a generally more inventive take on the interior space is the future of a happy office.
Another approach is to double up with another business: sublet and share to maintain your central London base and postcode, whilst remaining economically viable. Whatever the answer, a ‘creative’ review can be helpful, it’s time to think outside of the office box.
On the retail side, demands have fluctuated considerably, with once unshakeable retail giants diminishing as their online counterparts take centre stage. The traditional High Streets, once the cornerstone of everyday life is having to morph rapidly to keep pace and set to become a mix of residential conversions and smaller boutique offerings, fashion, coffee shops and bistros.
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We need to repurpose the existing buildings in our town centres to create the right balance of homes, workspaces, retail, leisure and services operating side-by-side.”
Source: Property Investor Today
If you’re standing at a crossroads pondering what to do next, or looking for some constructive suggestions for the future of your commercial space, why not give us a call? We can help landlords and commercial property owners to rethink their buildings and spaces to appeal to the landscape and audiences of 2022.
We take a responsive and proactive approach to commercial property management and offer all the usual services as standard:
We cover the key bases as a matter of course, but we go further. Our service is bespoke and strategic. We learn about you and your property/portfolio so we can help to position you as strongly as possible to attract the right tenants – and keep them. We’re on top of the changing face of post-pandemic London and we’re ready to act.