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Bruntwood shift strategic direction

Bruntwood is implementing a new strategy to convert 10 of their buildings into fully integrated, highly flexible serviced offices. Over the next 12 months Bruntwood will launch 600 desks and 55 meeting rooms to the North West market.

300 desks and 40 meeting rooms will be launched onto the Manchester city centre market while 300 and 15 respectively will be launched throughout Greater Manchester, Cheshire and Liverpool.

Bruntwood has a history of offering short, flexible leases encouraging their customers to moves within their portfolio and has historically operated a stand-alone business centre division. By integrating both they will raise service standards and facilities for all customers and in many cases reduce fixed occupational costs.

Bruntwood’s Chief Executive Chris Oglesby comments, “We’re really offering a more efficient way of running a business. Rather than companies having to design meeting rooms into their own suites they can now use our shared facilities, in many cases leading to significant savings in fixed occupational costs.”

Bruntwood has piloted its integrated offering in two buildings in Leeds, which collectively secured 30% of the city’s lettings in 2005. Oglesby comments “This model creates vibrant, multi occupied office buildings with customers occupying on terms that suit their business and using services only when they need them. The approach also won the recent National RICS Property Management and Delivery award.”

Bruntwood are offering leases from 1 day, anything from 1 desk upwards and access to meeting, boardroom and administrative support in multi occupied buildings. Oglesby comments “This breaks the traditional serviced office mould and on a like for like pure serviced basis, we aim to price it at 20% lower than current market levels, however for those customers occupying on a conventional basis and paying for additional services “as and when”, savings could be over 50%.

“Such a focus on service and the needs of our customers is still unusual in the property sector but Bruntwood have a different view, Oglesby comments “We believe our business is inextricably linked to that of our customers, so it makes sense for us to design our business around their needs. We expect our customers to down size their offices using our meeting and boardrooms when they need to. Managing fixed occupational costs down in this way is just common sense and good business.”