Setting Up an Office

Islands usually have specific legal and financial expertise and also advise private individuals on tax related matters. They may also offer a range of services including providing advice on shareholder tax planning, international tax structuring for multijurisdictional transactions, compliance prior to an overseas acquisition, to employment matters and reducing a business’s tax burden, as well as protecting and exploiting intellectual property. See the Immigration chapter for tax advisors.

Translation Services The WORC requires that all documents (i.e. medical and police clearance forms) being submitted from non-English speaking countries must first be translated into English and the translated copy notarised. The following company can help you with your translations:

Baraud Tel: (345) 945 1781 Email: translations@baraud.com www.baraud.com Baraud’s translation services are approved by both the Immigration Department and the Courts of the Cayman Islands. They offer a quick turnaround of a variety of documents to be translated for immigration or government purposes. The languages currently offered for translations are Spanish, French, Italian, German, Portuguese and Dutch.

Office Cleaning

Complete Clean Tel: (345) 939 5148 /325 4922 Email: info@completecleanky.com www.completecleanky.com Complete Clean provides professional commercial janitorial solutions for businesses, small and large spaces. Their hassle-free and efficient janitorial and sanitizing services can be custom-tailored to suit your business’s specific needs. They also offer specialty cleaning including tile, carpet, upholstery, and pressure wash. They use the best industry practices and

are fully insured. SEE AD PAGE 80 & 185 Hew’s Cleaning Services Tel: (345) 949 0734 www.hews-janitorial.com Hew’s are a family owned and operated company and have been in the Cayman Islands since 1977. All their work is safe, professional, trustworthy, efficient, friendly and caring. They specialise in maid services, offices, floors, carpets, upholstery, marble, windows, janitorial, mold and microbial remediation, water and fire restoration, as well as post-construction cleanup. Staff are trained in Applied Microbial Remediation and follow all protocols in cleaning and disinfecting for COVID-19 according to CDC recommendations. SEE AD PAGE 186

SETTING UP AN OFFICE

COMMERCIAL OFFICE SPACE The Grand Cayman commercial space rental market is one of the strongest in the Caribbean region, with high demand for all classes of space traditionally in the region of 75,000 sq ft to 125,000 sq ft per annum. The primary source of demand comes from the offshore financial sector, including law firms, accounting practices and insurance/ reinsurance firms. From a retail market perspective, the cruise ship duty free sector has historically been a dominant force, particularly within George Town, but since COVID there have been no cruise ships and they may not return until 2023.

The market comprises of close to 4 million sq ft of space in all classes, which breaks down to roughly 1.25 million sq ft of Class A office space, 1.75 million square feet of Class B space and close to 300,000 sq ft of retail. Class A cruise ship/duty free retail locations are rare and transact at high value.

Average vacancy rates vary by class and location, from as low as 2-3% for Class A+ to A space, 5-10% for Class A- to B+ and around 15%-20% for Class B and C space. Within these averages, there is a wide variety of vacancy rates, for example, some Class B properties in central George Town have vacancies of between 25% to 35%. This has been largely due to the exodus of larger corporate tenants from the typically

• Permanent Residency Applications • Residency Applications (RERC) • Naturalization Applications • Caymanian Status Applications • Work Permits • Passports

Website: ww.pearsonwise.com Email: info@pearsonwise.com Phone: (345)949-9666 PO Box 10328, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, KY1-1003

older buildings in George Town centre to the master-planned community of Camana Bay or edge of town development corridor of Elgin Avenue, such as Cricket Square. That said, we are starting to see a slowing down of that trend, and an increasing uptake in the George Town market as buildings have been renovated, and sometimes repurposed, and landlords have offered attractive rents and other incentives to retain tenants. Indeed, we have started to see an increased amount of interest in Class B+/B renovated spaces in Central George Town. This includes smaller turn key office suites with access to shared amenities such as conference rooms at an all inclusive price. This type of office space is attractive to small corporations and sole proprietorships who want to be in George Town with close proximity to all the additional amenities that George Town offers such as Class A banks, court house, government offices, and a mix of local restaurants and coffee shops. Several Class B buildings in George Town have sold recently and are under full renovations, which brings the increased revitalisation needed to George Town to attract tenants and new businesses. These renovations will in turn decrease the vacancy rates for the Class B office space as buildings are renovated to a higher standard. Recent freehold office sales include Commerce House, Bermuda House and Elizabethan Square, the former HSBC building, and various class B office buildings in central George Town. The former HSBC building was the highest commercial sale in 2020 which sold for CI$14,025,602 for 44,477 sq ft of office, retail and restaurant space equating to CI$315 psf.

Class A to A+ space is predominantly now found in development-type locations such as Camana Bay and Cricket Square on Elgin Avenue and in parts of the harbourfront where redevelopment has occurred. Other buildings have been renovated to a high standard where viable.

Office space rental rates range on a triple net basis from US$42 to US$55 sq ft per annum in the Class A to A+ market sector with the highest rents in Camana Bay to US$30 to US$42 per sq ft. in the Class B+ to A- market sector, falling to US$20 to US$30 psf pa in the Class B market. CAM charges range from between US$15 to US$18 psf pa in developments such as Cricket Square and Camana Bay where infrastructure costs are higher to between US$12 to US$14 psf pa in standalone office buildings in other locations. Retail rates vary from US$40 psf pa on Seven Mile Beach to the highs of Seafarers Way, Cardinall Avenue and Fort Street where rates of US$80 to US$130 psf pa are achievable.

More recently, as gross rent rates in developments such as Camana Bay and Cricket Square have risen to between US$60 – US$73 psf pa, increasing numbers of tenants are now choosing office space located in buildings within George Town centre once again.

As such, the current prognosis for George Town looks very positive, especially bearing in mind the government’s long awaited George Town revitalisation project, the potential for new developments and possibly a boutique hotel. All this will increase the foot traffic and hopefully provide more shaded public open spaces adjacent to businesses.

Office Space Availability If you are planning to lease office space in Cayman, you should speak with a realtor who specialises in corporate rentals. Though many of the real estate companies listed in the Finding a Home chapter can help you with residential rentals and sales, only a few agents on-Island specialise in commercial properties.

Cannon Place Tel: (345) 945 3517 or (345) 923 6465 Email: dave.mckay@rpmcayman.com www.cannonplace.ky Cannon Place is a well-established business centre, with 51 retail/office rental spaces.

Dart Tel: (345) 640 3600 Email: leasing@dartrealestate.com www.dartrealestate.com Dart has invested more than US$1.5 billion in the Cayman Islands, and has a wide portfolio of mixed-use, residential, commercial, recreational, educational and hospitality properties. Among its leasing portfolio is Camana Bay, which boasts more than 850,000 square feet of retail, office and residential space, as well as Regatta Office Park, Flagship Building and readyspaces, which offers flexible, turnkey, serviced office spaces. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2022 on 60 Nexus Way, Camana Bay’s first 10-storey office building, with 200,000 square feet of class-A commercial office space available for lease. Also coming online in 2022 is Kapok, a 10-storey for-lease residential building with ground-floor retail space also available for lease. Each property is serviced by a worldclass property management team.

SEE AD PAGES 67, 153 & 158

International Realty Group IRG Tel: (345) 623 1111 Email: info@irg.ky or www.irgcayman.com IRG - International Realty Group’s team of market sector specialists provide tailored expertise to the Cayman Islands’ luxury, commercial and residential real estate markets. IRG’s commercial property division provides a wide range of professional services including sales and leasing, tenant representation, lease renegotiation, property management, consultancy and corporate relocation.

Heritage Holdings Ltd. Tel: (345) 936 3343 Email: sales@heritageholdings.ky www.heritageholdings.ky A leading property development and management company in Grand Cayman specialising in commercial properties like the well known Centennial Towers and Countryside Shopping Village. Including a wide range of amenities to suit every business, these prime commercial spaces are centrally located close to banks, shops, pharmacies, and more. readyspaces Tel: (345) 743 4610 Email: info@readyspaces.ky www.readyspaces.ky They offer 25 turnkey, one to two-person fully serviced office suites along the Seven Mile Beach corridor with flexible, fixed short-term, month-to-month or daily occupancy terms. Located in Regatta Office Park with great proximity to shops, hotels and restaurants, readyspaces is the perfect solution for startups, small or growing businesses in the Cayman Islands. SEE AD PAGE 67

Regus (Cayman) Tel: (345) 743 4500 or www.RegusCayman.ky Part of a global network, Regus provides serviced turnkey office space with flexible terms in the heart of central George Town. Offering daily to monthly rates, they offer virtual offices, memberships, meeting rooms, co-working and private offices. Their services provide you with designated parking, reception staff, 24/7 IT support and relocation services.

SEE AD PAGE 82 RE/MAX Cayman Islands/ Michael Binckes Tel: (345) 938 3269 Email: michael.binckes@remax.ky

Rhulens Cayman Tel: (345) 938 1000 New York Tel: 1 (917) 836 9108 Email: sloane@rhulens.com www.rhulens.com / Member of CIREBA Rhulens offers comprehensive commercial real estate solutions with over 24 years of industry experience. If you are a Tenant looking to relocate, sublease, renegotiate or expand, or an Owner/Developer looking to lease or sell assets, Rhulens provides the expertise and strategic advice to help you achieve your goals.

SEE AD THIS PAGE

The Process of Setting Up an Office The length of time required to set up an office in Cayman largely depends on the condition of the space that your business will occupy. The simplest offices can be set up in four to eight weeks, however, this is uncommon. By the time a design has been

Full Service Real Estate Firm offering Commercial Leasing, Investment Sales, Residential Sales, Relocation Services and Rentals

finalised, interior finishes have been chosen, furniture ordered, IT systems specified and work permits and licences granted, you should expect about four to six months to have passed. Tenants may be required to submit fit-out plans to the Planning Department for building code approval.

Office Space Planning & Design Grand Cayman has a few well known architectural firms that have qualified interior designers on staff who specialise in interior design for commercial premises and can take a new or existing office and create a space to suit the requirements of your business. To find an interior designer in Cayman please see page 194.

Costs to Prepare an Office Space Costs depend on a number of factors, including the existing condition of the space and the quality of the final product you desire. Well-fitted existing office space in need of reconfiguration, with partitioned walls and internal offices, a suspended ceiling, fluorescent lighting, air conditioning and power grid already in place, may be prepared for as little as US$50 per sq ft.

Finding such spaces has become significantly easier and there is now an abundance of older properties available. New office space with only perimeter walls, one to two-hour fire rating separation walls and an air conditioning unit with an electrical panel sufficient for the tenants’ requirements, can be found and you may likely spend around US$120-US$200 per sq ft to prepare it to a reasonably high quality fit-out.

Some landlords will offer a standard fitout package, or even a fit-out allowance, in the region of US$20-US$40 per sq ft. In fact, some landlords in older buildings are offering full fit-outs at no cost to the tenant to attract quality tenants.

FITTING OUT YOUR OFFICE Telephone, Internet & Data There are five main telecom service

Prime location in historic building Custom workspace solutions Private designated parking Meeting rooms by-the-hour Business-grade Wi-Fi & internet Reception staff & 24/7 IT support Relocation services

at THE WHITE HOUSE

RegusCayman.ky | CaymanRelocation.ky +1 (345) 743-4500 | Cayman.TheWhiteHouse@regus.com 20 Genesis Close, George Town, Grand Cayman providers on-Island: C&W Business, FLOW, C3 Pure Fibre, Digicel and Logic who all offer a varying range of services and delivery mechanisms. FLOW and Digicel offer mobile phone service, both offering LTE data with speeds comparable to the US and Europe. Signal quality and data speeds are generally very good across the three Islands, as the topography of the Cayman Islands affords few black spots.

Fixed line calling rates are competitive on the International market and the service quality is generally good. Mobile phone service providers in Cayman supply the iPhone, Samsung Galaxy and other smart phones. Always check the cross-carrier rates to help in choosing what’s best for your business. International mobile phone roaming can be very expensive, but some business plans offer discounted roaming plans for customers that travel often. Modern collaboration platforms are also widely used on island. Some of these platforms support video and voice calling and can even route calls directly to mobile devices. Check out Monday.com, Toggl Plan, Flock, Filestage, Karbon or Microsoft Teams and Google Docs. WhatsApp is widely used in Cayman and many districts have a community-wide WhatsApp group to keep residents informed.

As a startup business you will be able to procure the usual services, such as Broadband up to 300Mbps, as well as fixed line telephony and more specialist data services such as MPLS (depending on your location). You may want to consider managed IT infrastructure and services being offered by local IT companies and telecom operators, such as Cloud back-up, business continuity, virtual data centres.

Grand Cayman is serviced by two underwater fibre links: MAYA1 which connects most of the western Caribbean nations, before returning to the US and the Cayman Jamaica Fibre System (CJFS) that takes an alternative route via the eastern Caribbean back to the US. These links have enough capacity to support any type of business and their data needs, with private bandwidth available to guarantee quality of

service consistently and when required.

Luckily, local providers are increasingly offering managed IT services that grow as your business does, with an easy ‘per user’ or ‘pay as you use’ approach, which removes the need for heavy financial investments as you set up your business on-Island. See the Settling In chapter for more information on telecommunications in the Cayman Islands and see providers below.

C3 Pure Fibre Tel: (345) 333 3333 or (345) 333 3353 Email: business@c3.ky www.business.c3.ky or www.c3.ky

FLOW/C&W Business Tel: (345) 949 7800 www.cwbusiness.com C& W Business is full service communications provider offering video, broadband, telephone and mobile solutions.

Digicel Tel: (345) 623 2499 Email: caymanbusiness@digicelgroup.com www.digicelbusiness.com Digicel Business offers a full range of ICT solutions including Systems Integration Services, Microsoft Azure Cloud Services, Managed Support Services and Network Access Solutions. Full end to end Managed Solutions are scalable, secure and competitive. Solutions also include mobile voice and data, Internet (up to 50Mbps download speeds across all three islands), IT and business continuity, network and IT security.

SEE AD THIS PAGE & PAGE 135

Logic 43 Eclipse Drive Tel: (345) 745 5555 Email: business@logic.ky or www.logic.ky Using fibre technology, Logic provides your business with fast, dependable and reliable internet access that is stable, worry free and offers the most resilient network infrastructure in Cayman. See their Fibre Coverage Map on their website to work out whether your area is