The West End is firmly in focus for flexible office companies looking for their next opening in London, with demand for sites in the Square Mile limited by comparison.
A Knight Frank survey of 25 landlords and operators of flex space in the capital found 96% expect to grow their portfolios in the coming year. Respondents included Landsec, British Land, GPE, the Office Group, Uncommon, Landmark, Argyll, the Boutique Workplace Company and Beaumont.
The West End has emerged as the frontrunner, with two-thirds saying sites in the submarket are ripe for the picking. By comparison, only 16% are looking at the City.
The survey found that average occupancy rates are back above pre-pandemic levels, with a fifth of respondents saying it was now as high as 80-90%.
The highest levels of occupancy were at sites in the West End, according to 54% of respondents. A quarter said the City was their busiest market, while just 8% highlighted east London as the top area.
Amanda Lim, UK head of flexible offices at Knight Frank, said: “Premium workspace operators have captured a growing market of nimble companies opting for more flexible leases in newer, personalised offices that remove various administrative hurdles and offer customer-centric amenities.
“Businesses can also be based in prime locations such as the West End, Bishopsgate and similar sought-after addresses, where securing long-term space remains challenging for some.”
Recent big flex deals include Landmark agreeing to refurbish the BBC’s Wogan House at 99 Great Portland Street, W1, and roll out 37,000 sq ft of flexible workspace, and GPE’s acquisition of 141 Wardour Street, W1, for £39m with plans to refurbish it to offer 33,717 sq ft of serviced offices.
Other deals include Huckletree’s plans to open 35,000 sq ft of workspaces across four floors in British Land’s 199 Bishopsgate, EC2, and Landsec’s expansion of its flex business, Myo, which is adding 100,000 sq ft of space in King’s Cross and Lucent behind the Piccadilly Lights after it added 140,000 sq ft to the market this year.
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