UNDERSTANDING BUILDING AND COMMERCIAL OFFICE AMENITIES

Concierge service, restaurants and bars, valet parking, gymnasiums, an architecturally acclaimed lobby – no this is not an excerpt from the luxury hotel brochure you’re considering for your next holiday, they are just some of the amenities you can expect in today’s commercial office buildings.

With variants on quality and quantity, you can quite reasonably expect to find any or all of these in your next business address as owners seek the competitive advantage to attract quality tenants.

EXAMPLES OF COMMERCIAL OFFICE AMENITIES

•  A prestigious address (the number 1 amenity)
•  24 hours concierge and lobby
• End of trip facilities – catering for the healthy and athletic
• Showers, lockers
• Cyclist, bike storage, bike service
• Gymnasiums
• Laundry services
• Elevators, quantity, speed, dedication to the destination
• Retail, food and coffee options
• Quality restaurants and bars
• Shared meeting/conference facilities
• Free and immediate wi-fi and internet connection
• Lounges and on floor kitchenettes
• Environmental / sustainability systems and ratings
• Technologically advanced building services, air conditioning, and lighting
• Car parks, valet

It does sound more like a hotel than an office building but before your CFO draws a big red line through this option as obviously too expensive or unnecessary extras, consider the issue of value versus cost and what office amenities you need.

ECONOMICAL VALUE VERSUS LUXURY COST

No doubt most people would love to live in luxury hotel style and most people can cleverly make a case to justify life’s little luxuries, but when it comes to the major expense of your office accommodation, more consideration is required.

These commercial office amenities cost money and the initial cost is outlawed by the building owner, to attract tenants – they want your business and they’ve done their sums. They want you in their building paying rent, included are all the latest luxuries to entice you, as this is how they get their return on their investment.

The question you need to ask your business :

• What is your return on the investment?
• What type of business are you?
• Do you need the status of a prestigious address?
• Will it increase your ‘sales’?
• Are your clients and investors prepared to pay more for your increased status?
• Is this the direction you are taking your brand, your company services?
• What about staff? Much of the advancement in building amenities today are primarily for your staff as companies are increasingly realising the value of staff. Could including high-end amenities in the office building be an astute recruitment strategy?
• Does the cost of losing staff outweigh the additional cost of having better work environments?
• Do you want to attract the active go-getter by providing in-house gyms, and cycling amenity?
• Do you want your staff to focus on work and productivity and have at least some time-consuming errands and activities available on-site?

Most astute business people will answer YES please.

COMMERCIAL OFFICE AMENITIES THAT EMPLOYEES WANT

Yesterday’s building marketing buzzword is now today’s standard inclusions: end of trip facilities, showers, lockers are essential needs to cater for those who ride and walk to work.

We here in Melbourne love a coffee and good food. The better the quality of the local or even integrated cafés and restaurants the higher the rent. Want or need? Experts studying negotiation say companies get more and better deals doing business in a comfortable café rather than the boardroom.

Good lifts are by far a standard. Today, a poor lift ruins the experience of any visitor or staff to your business and simply wastes your time.

Destination lifts are changing the way we move up and down today. Essential!

At Agero, we have always loved a great lobby. We are a design-conscious society and if your lobby presents badly, you’re living in the dark ages.

Not only does it add to your brand and image it can have amazing effects on staff productivity.

Arriving to work in an amazing building lobby may increase personal self-esteem, good feelings towards the employer and the work and hence increase productivity.

The final note.

Just as you are in no doubt a highly competitive marketplace for your products and services, so too building owners face a competitive environment to attract tenants.

Newer buildings come on line every year. The newer buildings have newer facilities and amenities and attract opportunity.

Buildings are initially measured on their location, then the space being leased, then the amenity.

The way the amenity is presented is key to understanding who your landlord really is or in other words – you can read a lot into a landlord by the way the amenity is presented.

So hold off on drawing a line through an amenity-ladened option before you carefully consider the value and advantages.

Debating what is essential or luxury for your next office fitout or relocation? Get in touch with Agero today, we’ll help you maximise your commercial office amenities without breaking your budget.