Microsoft has agreed a deal to lease space at Bruntwood’s Neo, the 52,000 sq ft creative workspace redevelopment in Manchester.
The company is taking 2,250 sq ft on the seventh floor of the 12-storey building. Around 100 staff are expected to take residency in the space from July.
Microsoft joins a growing community of digital innovation and communication specialists at Neo including Manchester Digital and creative marketing agency Notch Communications.
Neo was relaunched in March after a redevelopment of the former Bank House building on the corner of Portland Street and Charlotte Street in the city centre. Bank House served as the back office for the adjoining Bank Chambers, built in the 1970s as the Bank of England’s Northern bullion store.
Neo features Bluetooth-enabled mobile door access, a customer steering group, an on-site community and engagement manager curating a year-round programme of social and business support events, and a £250,000 interactive digital art space, launched with an inaugural installation by internationally-renowned artist Brendan Dawes.
A large open-air roof terrace on the first floor includes all-weather meeting pods and the building houses tech-enabled, high-quality workspace environments including co-working spaces, communal lounges and kitchens, presentation spaces, screening rooms and studios, in addition to larger open-plan office layouts.
Staff working at Neo will also have free Fitbit, discounted gym membership at the on-site gym and secure bicycle parking, in addition to changing rooms and showers on every floor.
Phil Kemp, chief commercial officer at Bruntwood, said: “Neo is well suited to this place, which has been designed to inspire creative thinking and collaborative working.
“Manchester was the birthplace of modern computing in the late 1940s and 1950s, so to welcome a true world leader in 21st century technology to our city is a proud moment for us.”
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