Homework Magazine #4 Autumn/Winter

autumn/winter 2017

limitless see how far you can go with Workspace

get connected Businesses thrive on the best people; and when creative individuals come together, interesting things happen. That’s why all of our centres have dynamic communal spaces and vibrant cafes, so great minds can meet in comfort. Then there are our free networking events, where seemingly unrelated businesses realise they can help each other.

Of course, it’s not just physical meeting spaces we provide, but superfast, building-wide connectivity too. Add telephony and funding consultation services, and you’ve got the ultimate #SuperConnected workplace. It’s what gives you The Workspace Advantage.

SMARTER BUSINESS STORAGE

EASY BOOKING ONLINE You can manage your bookings and items online or via our app

WE COLLECT AT ANY TIME Nationwide collection, right from your office

YOUR ITEMS SECURELY STORED At one of our secure logistics warehouses

NEXT DAY DELIVERY Back to you or your customers anywhere in the UK

Enter code LOVEWORK50 for 50% off storage for the first two months* visit lovespace.co.uk/workspace tel: 0800 802 1018 *offer valid until 31/03/2018. Terms and conditions apply

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wired differently…

Are you making the most of The Workspace Advantage? Our campaign launched in 2017 with three core pillars: Wired Differently, Super Connected and No Limits. We explore what these mean by taking you behind the scenes of customers at Workspace in our fourth issue of HomeWork magazine.

As you read this, you may be sitting at your work desk or relaxing in a breakout area at one of our business centres. Take a moment to picture yourself 25 years from now and imagine what your environment could look like. Will we all be communicating via augmented reality? Could eye contact be a thing of the past, and our headshots simply be a picture of us wearing futuristic-looking glasses? It’s an intriguing debate, one which architecture and design writer Anna Winston tackles in this issue’s lead feature - The Future of the Workspace – on page 34 in the Wired Differently section.

“ Workspace centres encourage people to connect and network”

The Workspace family has been going strong for over 30 years now, buoyed by a growing community of customers that has reached over 4,000 companies today.

Our business centres are designed to encourage people to connect and network with others; the new WorkspacePerks platform will help you connect even more and offer discounted services to fellow customers. Find out more about it in The Power of Collaboration on page 18 in the Super Connected section, and discover more about the history of the Workspace family on page 32.

A big thank you to our cover star Emily Bendell for taking part in our shoot and CM Delta for lending Emily a pair of ultra-stylish glasses from the Komono eyewear range. Marvel at CM Delta’s vibrant workspace at Grand Union Studios on page 46 in our No Limits section, and find out what makes Emily tick in our new My Workspace column at the back of the magazine on page 66.

You may notice some changes in this issue; we’ve given the magazine a fresh new look and hope you enjoy it!

Becky Fletcher Becky Fletcher is a London-based journalist specialising in health and wellbeing in her role as health and lifestyle editor at netdoctor.com. She’s written for the likes of The Daily Express, Cosmopolitan, Metro and Women’s Health. Becky is especially interested in mental health, sleep and fitness.

Anna Winston Anna Winston is an award-winning editor and writer, with more than 10 years’ experience reporting on architecture, design and technology. She’s the former editor of Dezeen – the world’s biggest architecture and design site – and is currently design editor for Oak The Nordic Journal.

Arthur House Arthur House is a freelance journalist whose writing on arts and culture appears regularly in The Spectator and The Economist’s 1843 magazine. He previously worked at The Telegraph and The Calvert Journal.

farah Farah Khalique, Editor @FarahKhalique

contribute We would love to hear what you think of the magazine and any exciting news to feature in the next issue, so why not tweet us @WorkspaceGroup using the #homeworkmag hashtag?

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autumn/winter 2017

contents

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Shop Workspace Get yourself sorted for the holidays and birthdays with these great gifts, courtesy of Workspace companies

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The Power of Collaboration Creativity is king when Workspace businesses start talking to each other

32

The Workspace Story Workspace celebrates 30 years of helping London’s start-ups and established brands

Hasta la vista! Modern memes foxing you somewhat? Then check out our jargon-buster to make sure you know your chatbots from your terrifying Terminator cyborgs

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+ 22 Sustainability Warriors Caring capitalism is no longer an oxymoron; find out how you can save the planet and still make money

28 Keeping it in the Family Why working with your siblings or parents might be the key to making it big

42 In a space A look at the latest trends in workplace furniture and decoration

50 Pitch perfect Most businesses need funding at some point. Here’s how to go about it

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The future of the work space What will the office of the future look like? We ask the experts how we’ll be working in years to come

the big picture

Workspace grows up London’s changed a lot since we started in 1987, but our commitment to nurturing businesses remains as strong as ever The Peek Frean biscuit factory in Bermondsey was once one of the biggest employers in south London.

While the men worked at the docks, the women of SE16 (left) brought in much-needed cash by packing custard creams and pink wafers. Today, Peek Frean is no longer in Bermondsey, but the collections of buildings – now known as The Biscuit Factory – is one of Workspace’s prime sites, providing a base for a range of innovative businesses. This space encapsulates what we’ve been doing since 1987, repurposing buildings for the new economy, and giving growing companies the facilities they need.

However, one thing hasn’t changed in SE16; you can still get a decent biscuit with your tea here – and lattes, too. Find out more about the history of Workspace on page 32.

“The Biscuit Factory provides a base for innovative companies” Want to see what Workspace can do for you?

Just visit workspace.co.uk and start your adventure from there

news

working knowledge Artisans tune in to The Record Hall

The newly developed Record Hall, based in Hatton Garden, is now home to a broad spectrum of businesses as well as a growing set of emerging and established jewellery makers.

London-based jewellery designers have been attracted to this newly renovated 58,000 sq. ft. office and studio space, based right in the heart of the iconic diamond district, and the creative space is now bustling with artistic energy.

Contemporary jeweller Farah Qureshi, previously based at the Oxo Tower, says: “After visiting the renovated Record Hall, I decided to share a studio space there. I really like the building at Baldwin’s Gardens, the aesthetic and the working space.”

The former record depository now provides the ideal location for easy reach of customers and suppliers within a dynamic co-working environment. Kova, Day C and Corinne Hamak are just a few of the jewellers flocking to The Record Hall.

Burt and Gurt Jewellery Ltd says: “Workspace so far has been a very good experience.

Having moved from one Workspace-managed building to another, we’ve found what makes it great are the centre managers who help run the building – kind, fun and very helpful. The Record Hall definitely has that creative and buzzing vibe, with the rooftop being the best place to feel inspired and motivated!”

Flourish wins prestigious news award

Flourish has won the 2017 Startups for News competition for its work on high-impact and daring solutions for the news industry. Based at The Record Hall, Flourish uses a data-visualisation platform to tell stories. In a pitch battle, Flourish was selected from more than 100 applicants as the most dynamic and innovative early-stage start-up by Global Editors Network (GEN), in partnership with journalism.co.uk. Flourish has partnered with Google to offer the service to newsrooms worldwide, free of charge. Now, more than 3,000 companies are on the waiting list to use Flourish, and will be invited to login in early autumn 2017.

learn here Find the right Informed Funding seminar to help you grow your business. Register to attend at informedfunding.com Personal Financial Strategies for Business Owners Thursday 21st September 2017 Grand Union Studios Angel Finance – Finance Seminar for Growing Businesses Thursday 19th October 2017 Pill Box Funding your R&D – Finance Seminar for Growing Businesses Thursday 18th January 2018 Clerkenwell Workshops Cloud Based Accounting for Cloud Based Finance Tuesday 6th February 2018 The Record Hall

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RIBA London Winner: Grand Union Studios

Workspace’s Grand Union Studios in Ladbroke Grove is a 2017 RIBA London Winner, after impressing judges with its contemporary style, developed by architecture firm AHHM. Selected from an 85-strong shortlist, Grand Union Studios features a simple courtyard model that produces a light-capturing space, connecting internal and external spaces seamlessly.

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Benvenuto! Find Claudi & Fin in Pizza Express

Ice lolly makers Claudi & Fin have launched their 100% natural mango-flavoured lolly range across 400 Pizza Express restaurants on the children’s Piccolo menu. Based at Parkhall Business Centre, Claudi & Fin has already signed deals with 1,000 Wetherspoons and 148 Ember Inns. Co-founder, Lucy Woodhouse, says: “We’re so excited to be stocked in Pizza Express. We were initially only meant to be on their summer Piccolo menu but they’ve extended our listing to the winter.”

viral outbreak

A zombie-filled action video produced by content and influencer marketing agency Socially Powerful, based at The Record Hall, is generating waves across the internet. The video claimed first place in the Viral Campaign category of PR Daily’s 2017 Digital PR & Social Media Awards.

The nail-biting Last Empire War Z video, which follows two survivors of a zombie apocalypse who battle it out with an army of ghoulish flesh-eaters, gained in excess of 100 million views on YouTube and Facebook. Produced for the UK launch of a mobile video game, it was shared 1.5 million times, sparked 300,000 comments and trended across social media platforms.

Want to witness the chase? check out www.youtube.com/ watch?v=lQHlZoB1Yjw&t=48s

Find your free expert funding advice Make the most of being a Workspace customer by checking in with financial planner, Informed Funding, and register for free advice that can help your business grow. Choose from a variety of options, including funding strategy consultations, seminars, workshops and access to over 800 finance sources. Informed Funding will run monthly consultations at Workspace’s business centres across east, west, central and north London. Workspace customers and Club members can find out more by emailing workspace@informedfunding.com.

“It doesn’t matter how big or small your business, the primary challenge is finding the most effective way of generating cash. Once you know that, then sourcing funding to accelerate growth can be straightforward. Informed Funding can help with both challenges.”

Chris Dines, CEO, Informed Funding

“Good benefit to have as part of Workspace.” June 2017 Workspace customer

Quarterly tax returns shelved The government has now backtracked on plans to make new and growing businesses and the self-employed file quarterly digital tax returns, after a public backlash. The climbdown on the proposal, which formed part of the government’s radical Making Tax Digital programme, came after more than 100,000 people signed a petition for the plans to be scrapped.

Businesses with an annual turnover of less than £85,000 will not have to file quarterly tax returns (for now); however, those earning over the VAT threshold will have to start using the quarterly system in 2019.

In the meantime, remember the next self-assessment tax deadline is on 31st January 2018. Always something to look forward to.

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Get clued up on data privacy How does your business handle data privacy of customer information? New, stricter EU data protection laws will come into force on 25th May 2018 that will standardise how companies record, use and protect personal data. The General Data Protection Rules (GDPR) will apply to any company that holds information on EU citizens, whether it’s based in or out of the EU. Brexit won’t get you off the hook – the UK won’t leave the EU until 2019 – and moreover, the UK government is preparing a new Data Protection Bill that will enshrine the key principles into UK law.

Businesses that fail to comply face a maximum fine of €20 million or 4% of annual turnover, whichever is greater.

More info at www.ico.org.uk

Club news PACT COFFEE HITS LONDON BRIDGE A new range by the coffee-delivery service Pact - a Workspace customer based at The Biscuit Factory - has been trialled in Club Workspace London Bridge, and the feedback is glowing.

The ethical brand promises to “make coffee a force of good” and the word is certainly spreading.

HATTON GARDEN & CHISWICK Club Chiswick has reopened its doors after extensive renovation work. The new space has been integrated into the modernised Barley Mow Centre communal area, along with four new meeting rooms and a cafe. Across town, Club Hatton Garden opened at The Record Hall in June this year. The sixfloor business centre, set inside an old record depository, is the latest exciting redevelopment in Baldwin’s Gardens.

MOVERS AND SHAKERS IT recruitment agency Ad Hoc Minds has recently joined the Club Workspace family at Kennington Park. The Italianrun agency provides an expert insight into the future of technology and trends within the industry. adhocminds.com Engineering design company DWR Offshore Ltd recently launched after three friends took the plunge, quit their jobs and started up their own company.

It’s now based at Club Workspace London Bridge. dwroffshore.com Hospitality company Fab Staff is scaling up its business at Club Workspace Cargo Works after securing funding from Startup Direct, and is also receiving a year’s worth of mentoring and support.

Fab Staff says: “Now we can execute our plan to scale-up the business and develop strategies to win new clients.” fabstaff.co.uk

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sole trader

SMART WAYS TO BOOST YOUR FREELANCE INCOME Going it alone in business opens up a new way of life, where you can call the shots (and choose what time to get out of bed in the morning). But risks include infrequent work, late payment of invoices and less financial security – plus, you still have to answer to the tax man. So, get ahead with our income-boosting tips…

From April 2018, freelancers and contractors who run limited companies – as well as small businesses with a couple of employees – will be affected by a new tax rule announced in the spring budget. The tax-free dividend will be cut from the current £5,000 to £2,000. This will hit the many business owners who pay themselves in dividends on top of a small salary. To prepare for this, here are some ways to increase your income – but remember to chat with your accountant in good time, too.

Speak to your spouse

Everyone is entitled to £11,500 of Personal Allowance which is untaxed, so make sure you use all your combined £23,000 tax-free allowance. There are no restrictions on passing money between spouses.

Take an interest

Generate some of your income as interest rather than dividends, say in the form of interest paid from bonds. The Personal Savings Allowance allows £1,000 to be held in cash tax-free. It’s also possible to gift dividends to your children. See, they do have a use after all.

Sell your invoice

This is handy when you need payment upfront and don’t have time to wait for invoices to be paid – especially useful when the tax bill deadline strikes! Raise cash against your invoice using Workspace customer GapCap – upload an invoice and find out within 24 hours if you’re eligible for early payment, with no hidden fees. Invoice financing is a growing tool among the self-employed as a way of releasing funds quickly. GapCap is doing so well, it recently upgraded its offices to The Record Hall in Hatton Garden from Quality Court near Chancery Lane.

Be efficient

Explore tax-efficient wrappers like an ISA, pension, venture capital trust or enterprise investment scheme. The ISA allowance rose from £15,240 to £20,000 in the 2017/2018 tax year, so it’s worth making full use of it if you’re not already, though speak to a qualified investment adviser first.

“ The tax-free dividend cut will hit the many small business owners who pay themselves in dividends”

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Shop Workspace From posh coffee pods to gemstone jewellery and award-winning luxury chocolates, Workspace customers are pioneers in crafting beautiful, timeless products. Find your ideal gift today.

Pictures: Aneta at 3 Objectives Studio, Kennington Park

Precious stones This 9ct gold turquoise gemstone necklace would be the perfect gift for a friend or loved one with a December birthday. A stone of protection, luck and power, turquoise is believed to bring strength to its bearer.

Bali December Birthstone Necklace Turquoise Auree Jewellery ÂŁ250

Choc heaven This large hamper is filled with the finest chocolates, sweeties, nougats and many more delights! Perfect for sharing with the family or as a corporate gift.

Rococo Balthazar Hamper No.3 Rococo Chocolates (Parkhall Business Centre) ÂŁ119.95

shop workspace

Pass the boules Stuck for Secret Santa ideas? This nifty mini boules set is a great way to pass the time at your desk while stuck on hold, or simply when you need a break from the grind.

Mini Boules Rigby & Mac (Parkhall Business Centre) £14.95

Fire up the Nespresso!

Nespresso-compatible coffee pods for discerning drinkers. Each box contains 32 pods – why not try all three flavours?

Volcano Coffee Works (Parkhall Business Centre) Red: Bold Morning Shot £22 Orange: Balanced All Day £22 Black: Reserve Rich Sweet £30

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Kiddy comforts The perfect gifts for cute little ones, made from sustainable sources that are kinder to the environment.

Top: Unisex Hedgehog Print Knotted Hat £8 Left: Unisex Hedgehog Bodysuit (twin pack) £24 Right: Unisex Hedgehog Print Footed Babygrow £20 Lucy & Sam (Parkhall Business Centre)

Man’s best friend Original Hand Cream £5, Original Face Scrub £5, Original Moisturiser £6, Original Face Wash £4.50, Original Skincare Trio £12 Bulldog Skincare For Men (Grand Union Studios) Keep an eye out for WorkspacePerks, our exciting new platform that allows Workspace customers to pitch services and products to one another and offer discounts Find out more about the potential for collaboration at Workspace on page 18

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always plan ahead Thursday 5th Remember to register for Self Assessment with HMRC.

Tuesday 28th, Barley Mow Centre

Tuesday 28th – Thursday 30th, The Old Truman Brewery Head to the East End to get the latest on healthcare innovation. Read Work to Live on page 54 for our editor’s take on wearable tech.

GIANT Health Event 2017

Workspace Business Insight Dinner

Thursday 16th – Friday 17th, Olympia London The UK’s biggest exhibition for anyone starting or growing a business, this place is network central. Guest speakers include Olympian Roger Black MBE and ex-Workspace customer and lingerie supremo, Caprice Bourret. Club Workspace members, check out the Business Startup event on the 16th.

The Business Show 2017

Wednesday 15th – Thursday 16th, Olympia London This two-day event will get you up to speed on fast-moving topics like AI and machine-learning. No time? Check out our jargon buster on page 60.

Big Data LDN

Workspace Business Insight Dinner

Thursday 2nd, Metal Box Factory

Tuesday 31st Midnight deadline for paper tax returns.

november

Tax deadline

Newly self-employed?

Wednesday 4th – Thursday 5th, ExCel London Do you feel your business is lagging behind in the IT stakes? Europe’s number one IT event shows you how the latest IT innovations can drive your business forward. Check out Cyber Security Europe to ensure your business is safe from cyber attacks.

IP Expo Europe

Wednesday 4th Calling all architects and urban planners. A fifth of the world’s population lives in China; its cities are overcrowded. The UK government is putting up £3 million to foster work with Chinese partners on innovative urban solutions in the Guangdong province.

UK Innovate UK Funding deadline

october

Workspace Business Insight Dinner Tuesday 26th, The Record Hall ‘It’s not just profits: why successful businesses invest in their community’ This WBI Dinner is a chance to look at some different models of businesses that work in the community, and what makes for a successful investment in the relationship. It’s not just about big, corporate PR either – we will be looking at the benefits and challenges of smaller businesses working in their community.

Friday 15th – Tuesday 19th Do you love style? Visit londonfashionweekfestival.com for fashion show tickets and information on talks with industry veterans. London will be flooded with beautiful people, so hit up the city’s finest bars and clubs #modelsandbottles.

London Fashion Week

Wednesday 27th The funding deadline for this competition closes. Do you run a machine-learning business? Make sure to apply for the government’s Small Business Research Initiative funding competition. Your business could get up to £250K.

Innovative UK: Machine Learning

Saturday 16th – Sunday 24th Celebrating the city’s credentials as the world’s design capital, London will host 400 events. Head to Exchange Square in Broadgate to see the colourful building block castle, Villa Walala, by artist Camille Walala.

London Design Festival

september

When your mind’s on more pressing matters, it’s easy to miss the business events that matter in London. That’s why we’ve done the searching for you. All you have to do is decide which ones you want to attend.

Tuesday 20th, Clerkenwell Workshops

workspace.co.uk/community/events

be sure to check our website for more unique Workspace events

Pictures, from top: London Fashion Week 2017; London Design Festival, Flynn Talbot Reflection Room; Workspace Business Insight Dinner: Wellness at Work; Scala eXchange event; British entrepreneur Michelle Mone speaking at Elite Business Live

Wednesday 21st – Thursday 22nd, ExCel London These awards recognise the movers and shakers in marketing. They will take place at the B2B Marketing Expo, the UK’s leading marketing event, with 500 seminars and 200 free masterclasses on topics like digital marketing and “ninja traffic”.

B2B Marketing Expo Awards

Thursday 1st – Friday 2nd, ExCel London How can UK small businesses secure growth and reach their potential? This two-day event is packed with speakers, seminars, workshops and networking opportunities.

Elite Business Live

march

Workspace Business Insight Breakfast

Monday 5th, The Guardian Social media consultant Julie Falconer will teach you how to harness photo-sharing app Instagram to build your brand’s online presence, in a threehour masterclass. Book on Evenbrite for £99, plus booking fee.

Guardian Masterclass: How to use Instagram to build your brand

february

Wednesday 31st – Thursday 1st, Olympia London Help your staff get ahead. Europe’s leading showcase of organisational learning and the technology used to support learning at work. (See our Sustainability Warriors article on page 22).

Learning Technologies event

Wednesday 31st File your tax return online by midnight to avoid penalties from HMRC.

Online tax submission deadline

Tuesday 9th, Club Workspace Hatton Garden, The Record Hall Turn those lurkers into paying customers; join NatWest Business Growth Enabler Sharniya Ferdinand to learn more.

How to convert site visitors to buying customers

january

Thursday 14th – Friday 15th, Business Design Centre Are you up to speed on your coding skills? One for the programmers at Workspace.

Scala eXchange 2017

Wednesday 6th, The Old Truman Brewery One for marketers, this event features talks on marketing, technology and consumer culture.

Most Contagious

Saturday 2nd, Olympia London Find the hottest influential content creators and celebrities at #Beautyconlondon, a place for brands and fans to meet and talk all things beauty.

Beautycon Festival

december

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super connected Left: Tony Woods, Garden Club. Thanks to contacts made at Workspace, Garden Club has attracted new customers

the power of

collaboration There’s well connected, and then there’s Super Connected. Find out how your business can connect and collaborate with others, and how Workspace is boosting super connectivity with its new WorkspacePerks platform

In our ultra-connected digital world, it’s easy to overlook the value of real-life encounters. But crucial to any successful business is having trusted connections and opportunities to make new ones.

For its business customers, the buzzy communal areas of Workspace’s buildings teem with potential clients and collaborators; regular events provide every chance for that elusive but sought-after commodity – word of mouth – to spread among its 4,000-plus customers.

Building bridges

As a gardener, Tony Woods knows a thing or two about nurturing environments. When he moved his urban garden design company, Garden Club, into Workspace’s Vox Studios in Vauxhall, the conditions were ripe for collaboration. “It’s a close-knit community, we had the opportunity to meet all our neighbours,” says Tony. “We managed to cover our rent for a few months just on word-

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of-mouth business from other tenants, which was fantastic.” As well as finding clients at Vox, Garden Club has also brought business to others. It enlisted Spoke, a creative agency based on the floor above, to produce short films documenting two recent projects: a rooftop garden at John Lewis on Oxford St and a floating “pocket park” at Paddington Basin. The new 730 sq. m. floating park on the Grand Union Canal is a striking green public space with open lawn areas and a wildlife island. It was a tricky installation, but is already proving popular with the local community.

Spoke has also found friends easy to come by since launching in 2015, when it moved into Metal Box Factory in Southwark. “We wanted to be in a building with businesses that we could pitch to with relative ease,” says Director Tom Harvey.

The company had cards designed introducing themselves to their new neighbours and left them in the cafe for people to pick up, a move that quickly led to Spoke’s first collaboration with asset-raising firm Juniper Place. Since moving to Vox for more space, Harvey has found the sociable aspects of the building, with its cafe and outdoor seating area, indispensable. “It’s even more communal than Metal Box,” he says. “It’s good to be able to say hello to

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super connected Left: FreemarketFX’s James Allum describes P2P in a nutshell Below: Spoke’s Tom Harvey chose Workspace so the company could pitch to neighbours

P2P FreemarketFX demonstrates how collaboration is driving prices lower for customers. Based at The Print Rooms in Southwark, the currency exchange’s business model is powered by peer-topeer connectivity. The platform brings together buyers and sellers of currencies, allowing them to trade directly with one another and cut out the middleman like a bank or broker. It’s “like Betfair but for foreign exchange”, according to Chief Commercial Officer, James Allum, and operates at a 0.2% commission, making it 75-90% cheaper than high street rates.

Perfect for small and mediumsized businesses that need to pay international suppliers or import goods, freemarketFX is offering a free first transfer to Workspace customers. To claim your introductory offer go to freemarketfx.com, set up an account and use the code FREEHWMAG1.

people, ask questions, and get involved with them.” Interactions like these have produced an ongoing partnership with Shades of Colour, a printing company based just down the corridor.

Over at the Barley Mow business centre in Chiswick, Ten Health & Fitness must be popular with its neighbours. The company, which specialises in dynamic reformer pilates, offers massages and physiotherapy at reduced rates to Workspace customers, as well as consulting on posture and wellness in the workplace. For its newest studio in Fitzrovia, Ten faced a unique challenge, thanks to some local by-laws.

“Because it’s the old rag trade area, Westminster Council insists that local businesses maintain a showroom,” explains Creative Director Justin Rogers. The company made a virtue of a necessity by joining forces with Barley Mow neighbour HPE, which produces clothing for the fastgrowing athleisure sector.

The resulting studio-cum-shop launched in April, and so far everyone’s happy. For HPE, it’s the company’s first dedicated store in the UK, while for Ten, the stylish window displays are encouraging new customers into the studio.

You’ve got a friend

Collaboration isn’t just about money changing hands. “There’s a culture of people doing each other favours,” says Donna Bamford, Co-founder of Sparks, which runs filmmaking courses for children, and is based at Pill Box in Bethnal Green. For one film set in a shoe factory, they borrowed props from their Workspace neighbour, a shoe-making school called I Can Make

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Shoes. Sparks also put on Fright Flicks, a Halloween-themed short film festival for children. Pill Box Centre Manager, Luciana, gave them meeting rooms, empty units and corridors for a reduced rate, which they transformed into a haunted house with the help of a designer.

Word of mouth is fantastic for collaboration, but so is a search engine.

Workspace is making it even easier for its businesses to help each other out with a new initiative This year will see the launch of WorkspacePerks, a platform that allows Workspace customers to pitch their services and offer discounts to other customers. For businesses, there will be offers on anything from furniture to storage, stationery, insurance, HR and cleaning, while deals for customer employees will include gym memberships, coffee and clothes, all redeemable with a discount code.

“We’ve got a huge number of really exciting businesses within our portfolio and I thought it was a shame that they didn’t know much about each other,” says Corporate Development Manager, Stefan Duda, the brains behind WorkspacePerks. “To have a free advertising platform that encourages trading with each other is a massive selling point, especially for small businesses.” ww To advertise your company’s services and discounts on the WorkspacePerks platform, please contact workspaceperks@workspace.co.uk.

Let’s get Super Connected. Have you successfully collaborated with others at Workspace? Share your stories on Twitter with @Workspace, don’t forget to use the hashtag #homeworkmag

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“ There’s a culture of people doing each other favours” Top: I Can Make Shoes Left: Fright Flicks Below: Ten Health & Fitness

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super connected Darryl Mootoosamy from B Lab photographed at Clerkenwell Workshops

“ It was a bit like putting a man on the moon” Chris Stanley, Anthesis

sustainability warriors Corporate social responsibility is no longer the clichéd buzzword it used to be. We take a look at a movement where sustainability isn’t a secondary concern but central to business strategy.

Workspace customers like B Lab and Anthesis are at the cutting edge of “caring capitalism”…

Remember 1995, when Eric Cantona kung-fu-kicked a fan; the prime minister announced a snap leadership election; Pierce Brosnan played Bond; Millennials didn’t matter; and your preference for either Häagen-Dazs or Ben & Jerry’s really said something about you?

Ben & Jerry’s was one of the first brands to use ethical standards to drive its marketing efforts – and differentiate itself from the more seductive messaging of rival Häagen-Dazs.

The Unilever conundrum

Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield championed “caring capitalism”. They donated a portion of pre-tax profits to their charity foundation; talked about the importance of

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the environment; and shared profit among staff. It was revolutionary. Customers loved it, while naysayers waited for it to flop. When the brand was bought out by fast-moving consumer goods company Unilever in 2001, it felt like the death knell had sounded for its singular social mission.

Anthesis, an international sustainability consultancy and Workspace customer is at the forefront of promoting caring capitalism.

Director Chris Stanley believes that in the ’90s and ’00s, businesses became more focused on short-term financial profit.

“It was accelerated by the dot-com revolution because people started realising you could make money quick – big money – and get overinflated values on their companies,” he says.

A former Unilever employee, he thinks the conglomerate also succumbed to pleasing shareholders at all costs. “A lot of the heritage and culture started to change. The majority of the focus was on making a more efficient business to deliver better financial returns.”

But after the crash of 2008 and 2009, a sea change occurred. Businesses started to shift the emphasis from Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) – “a defensive

mechanism”, as Stanley puts it – to making sustainability a core part of the business strategy. “Unilever is the best example of that,” says Stanley.

CEO Paul Polman developed a clear purpose for Unilever: to make sustainable living commonplace. Launched in 2010, a year after he got the job, the plan was to help more than a billion people take action to improve their health and wellbeing, halve the business’s environmental impact and enhance the livelihoods of millions of people.

“At the time they said they didn’t know how they were going to achieve it,” Stanley says. “It was a bit like putting a man on the moon. They thought: ‘This is what we want to do, we have a fantastic business with lots of clever people, let’s see how we can do it.’

As a result they’ve made some huge strides in reducing their environmental impact.”

So what happened to the ice cream?

In 2012, Ben & Jerry’s – now the fourth largest ice-cream brand in the world – enshrined social responsibility into its Articles of Association. It became a “B Corp”, which is in some ways the equivalent of a Fair Trade certificate but for businesses instead of products.

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“A lot of the things that people used to put under CSR were just a ‘greenwash’” Darryl Mootoosamy, B Lab

Below: Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream pioneered caring capitalism Opposite: The team at B Lab

Ben & Jerry’s pioneered the ethos of caring capitalism when it donated part of its profits to charity, something that’s still enshrined in its Articles of Association, despite the fact it was sold to Unilever

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Seeing past the greenwash

B Lab, the UK arm of the B Corp campaign, is based at Workspace’s Clerkenwell Workshops. Founded in the US in 2006, the movement introduces common ethical standards; helps businesses become more purposeful; and reassures consumers that when a business says it’s doing good, it really is.

Companies wishing to become a B Corp have to undergo a rigorous assessment process – answering questions about their supply chain, pay structure, workforce and governance. Ella’s Kitchen and Divine Chocolates are just some of the British businesses that are certified.

B Corp also works with large corporations – Danone is undergoing the process.

Darryl Mootoosamy, in charge of business development at B Lab, says that

there has been a backlash against CSR as “customers see past it”. No amount of philanthropy could, for example, neutralise scandals like the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Arts institutions still face intense criticism when accepting sponsorship from BP. The disconnect between advertising messages and what companies were actually doing became problematic. Stanley says: “A lot of the things that people used to put under CSR were just a ‘greenwash’. They were small things that looked good but in the grand scheme of things, they were a drop in the ocean. That’s where the bad press came from. NGOs and experts got fed up with companies trotting out the same old clichés.”

Genuine sustainability is a generational concern. Millennials and Generation Z are far more in touch with the impact they’re having on the Earth – the effect they’re

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This time with purpose If you’re seriously thinking about sustainability in your business, here are some good sustainability resources…

B Lab

This non-profit organisation helps for-profit companies use business as a force for good. Complete an online assessment form, undergo a 90-minute review call and your business could be a B Corp. More than 50,000 companies have taken the online assessment globally.

B Lab is based at Clerkenwell Workshops, so pop in. www.bcorporation.uk

Anthesis having through their decisions, the clothes they wear, where they’re spending, where they work.

Furthermore, business’s impact on the environment cannot be hidden in “a world where information is rampant,” Mootoosamy says. “Everything has to be transparent and if a company is not transparent, they’re going to be found out.”

More at stake

This is about more than sustainability; it is about giving companies a purpose.

“A purpose is doing something which benefits the customers, workers, community or the environment,” says Mootoosamy.

High-profile British B Corps such as COOK hire ex-prisoners to help make food in the kitchen, while JoJo Maman Bebe takes on people with Down syndrome in its baby clothing stores.

Mootoosamy says: “That’s where they’re making a difference. They’re not doing good on the side, it’s part of their business model.”

Tech company Satalia, which uses artificial intelligence (AI) to make companies more efficient, also views purpose as central to its mission. The “North Star” at the heart of Satalia’s strategy, says CEO Daniel Hulme, is “to make people free to do the work they love.”

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The 70-strong team of scientists, academics, entrepreneurs and engineers has worked for the Ministry of Defence, one of the top four management consultancy firms and well-known retailers. Despite the company’s growing size, it can maintain the flat hierarchy, transparent pay structure and independent research because of one simple thing.

“We managed to hold off raising investment which means we’re not beholden to people who have a commercial impulse,” says Hulme. This means Satalia can focus more on the company’s purpose and making the business financially sustainable, as opposed to financial terms for investors.

This is the key difference between traditional businesses – that may indulge in CSR – and purposeful ones. The former looks after the interests of shareholders – often investment funds who are out to make money or pension funds that aim to deliver steady returns – whereas the latter prioritises stakeholders.

Sustainable savings

But looking after stakeholders does not mean shareholders suffer. In 2015, Unilever’s 12 sustainable living brands grew a third faster than the rest of the business. Stanley

Founded four years ago, fastgrowing global sustainability consultancy, Anthesis, has a fundamental purpose – supporting “better business for a better world”. Anthesis works for clients like Tesco, The North Face and Unite Students, one of the UK’s leading providers of student accommodation.

It has 15 offices internationally, with 25 team members based in their London office at The Leather Market. www.anthesisgroup.com

The Crowd

An incubator, tech business and event organiser with a mission to “leave the world a better place than we found it”, how can The Crowd help your business? Via the website, sign up to events on how to make your supply chains more sustainable, read blogs on how brands can better promote their values and watch videos on all things purposeful and sustainable.

The Crowd is an “inspiring environment where big business, advisers and NGOs can share their thinking around the solutions.”

Over 15,000 people have taken part so far. www.thecrowd.me

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Purposeful businesses

Bloomberg Businessweek highlighting the fallout from the Deepwater Horizon crisis for BP

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The variety and creativity of the more than 4,000 companies at Workspace is astounding. Here are some enterprises based in our business centres that have put purpose at the heart of their strategy.

Pact Coffee Coffee-delivery service Pact Coffee, based in The Biscuit Factory, wants to use the black stuff as a force for good. It goes one step further than fair trade and prides itself on direct trade. Head of Coffee, Will Corby, meets and negotiates directly with farmers all over the world. pactcoffee.com

Igloo Regeneration Igloo Regeneration has certified as a B Corp. The estate agency business, which has a division in Clerkenwell Workshops, works with sustainable investors, local authorities and landowners to make the world a better place.

Its sustainability policy, called Footprint, focuses on health, happiness and wellbeing; regeneration; environmental sustainability; and urban design. iglooregeneration.co.uk

Impact Squared A Club Workspace member at Chancery Lane, Impact Squared works with “social causes to elevate their message, motivate individuals to act and evaluate their impact”.

Led by its founder and CEO Noa Gafni Slaney, it provides a suite of services to amplify socially good initiatives. impactsquared.com

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“ No amount of philanthropy could neutralise scandals like the Deepwater Horizon oil spill” is convinced it’s because these brands make superior merchandise.

“They’re better products,” he says, highlighting efforts to reduce packaging and increase manufacturing efficiency. “It’s encouraged more collaboration between business, across industries, and in companies that used to compete.”

Mootoosamy believes that prioritising a sustainable business leads to better due diligence.

Law firm Bates Wells Braithwaite took the assessment to determine its supply chain.

The assessment means businesses know more about their suppliers: their code of conduct, what they pay and how they treat employees, as well as where they source products.

“Rigorous investigation was ultimately good for them. They created a supplier code of conduct, they have a team which looks at the supply chain and keeps track of it on a regular basis,” he says.

A business with purpose is also key to a good hiring strategy. Mootoosamy knows it first hand. He left his job in a FTSE 500 company because he felt like he wasn’t adding value. “Fulfilment comes from doing something you enjoy but also from knowing

that you’ll leave the world a better place – and you’re not just making money for some fat cat sitting in an office.”

Hulme agrees: “If I’m a young, talented graduate and I have two companies I can work for, both selling same services – but one has a purpose and the other one doesn’t – which one would you work for?”

And although AI may increase businesses’s efficiency, it may not necessarily lead to job losses.

Hulme thinks a greater proportion of the workforce should devote time to purposeful aims. “One, because it’s good for the world and two, because it’s a very good marketing tool to attract customers and attract talent.”

In 2015, Bloomberg reported that Unilever exceeded sales targets for the first three quarters. The growth came from emerging markets and… you guessed it: ice cream. Looks like going green really does pay dividends, shareholders or not. ww To find out how you can make your business become more purposeful, get in touch with Darryl Mootoosamy at B Lab at Clerkenwell Workshops by emailing hello@bcorporation.uk

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Familiar sight?

You’re busy. Very busy. So the last thing on your mind is finding a trustworthy cleaning company to keep on top of your office chaos.

Olivers Mill is Workspace’s trusted cleaning operator and for good reason. ISO accredited for quality and with a DBS-checked workforce, you’ll love the fact that you can pick and choose the services you want. No equipment is stored at your office, there’s secure access management and no long contracts.

Get a quote for the services you need by getting in touch via workspace@oliversmill.co.uk

Because life is too short for messy offices!

oliversmill.co.uk/workspace Cleaners are paid the Living Wage which is more than the Minimum Wage, and all rubbish and recycling is processed in line with the Workspace Waste Strategy

super connected Reza and Ali Merzaee have made a success from their similarities and differences

“ The project completion party was the

first time people realised that there were two of us!”

keeping it in the family What do companies like JCB, Warburtons, Walkers Shortbread, Baxters and Russell & Bromley all have in common? They’re all family-run. Here, we ask four Workspace-based companies about the opportunities and challenges that arise from working with loved ones Napoleon supposedly said that Britain was a nation of shopkeepers, but he might well have said we’re a nation of familyrun businesses. Studies have shown that family firms in the UK account for around a quarter of UK GDP and more than 12 million jobs. Resource centre, Family Business United, reported that almost £50 billion of revenue was generated by the 20 largest family companies in the UK. PricewaterhouseCooper’s eighth family business survey interviewed key decision- makers in more than 2,800

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large family companies internationally.

Its findings show family firms pride themselves on agility, innovation and the long-term view; in particular they’re employee-friendly, far-sighted and nimble.

However, working with siblings, parents or spouses can present its own set of challenges – sometimes of Godfather proportions. We talk to four sets of entrepreneurs about how blood, love and a shared home life affect how their business works.

Double trouble Reza and Ali Merzaee, Clic2Control Grand Union Studios

Identical twins Reza and Ali Merzaee went into business together eight years ago after studying management and working for technology companies. Clic2Control designs and installs smart home systems that automate lighting, heating, film or music around the house.

The biggest benefit of working with his twin is that there are no trust issues, says Reza.

“We know exactly what the other one is thinking.”

Knowing one another inside out also makes it easier to define roles in the business. “After so many years we’re aware of each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and we play them off against each other,” says Reza. “I tend to be more technical and Ali’s more sales-oriented.”

Spending too much time with each other is a potential risk, but Reza isn’t too worried about the prospect of the pair falling out.

“Ali’s married and I’m not, so that allows us to separate our personal lives a bit.”

Being identical twins can throw up its amusing moments, too.

“We worked on a project at One Hyde Park that lasted eight months,” he says.

“I was project-managing it, working with architects and interior designers on-site while my brother was having off-site

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super connected

meetings with the same people.

“The project completion party was the first time people realised that there were actually two of us!”

Hey brother Tom and Jaime Dyer, The European Bartending School London The Biscuit Factory

Top: Cocktail specialists Jaime and Tom Dyer shake it up Above: John and Scot Warner from SpinMe Above right: Lee Thompson and Radha Vyas take a pause from organising holidays

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Tom Dyer, a two-time World Champion Flair Bartender, set up the London franchise of the European Bartending School seven years ago with his business partner, Jay. Tom’s sister Jaime, whose background was in hospitality and demand planning, came on board after moving back from Australia three years ago to manage the school on a day-to-day basis. The EBS offers three types of course, from an intensive fourweek programme for novices to an advanced flair course where you can learn how to rustle up a drink like Tom Cruise in Cocktail.

For Jaime, the best thing about working with Tom is getting to meet him regularly.

“A lot of siblings don’t see each other as much when they get older,” she says. “We have a similar sense of humour so it’s a fun environment to work in. We laugh a lot.”

Broaching the issue of salaries is the hardest thing. “These things can be quite

delicate,” says Jaime. “Tom’s got to make a decision from a business perspective rather than a family one.” To minimise any awkwardness, Jaime ensures that Tom and Jay are both present for these sorts of conversations.

Father and son

John and Scot Warner, SpinMe The Leather Market

SpinMe delivers 3600 product photography for clients including Superdry and Selfridges.

It also sells its imaging software to retailers.

Former rally driver John Warner co-founded the business in 2004, before his son Scot, who’d worked in post-production in Soho, came on board full-time in 2008.

For Scot, the best thing about working with his dad is the opportunity to learn from him. “Normally, father-son knowledge only gets passed down in your free time,” he says.

However, working with family members can mean emotions boil over in a way that they wouldn’t otherwise.

“Dad can be quite headstrong. We do clash sometimes and end up arguing.”

As a result, John and Scot have learned the importance of respecting each other’s space. “If you’re in a bad mood, have a cool-off period,” says Scot. “If after that you still feel the

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How to survive and get ahead in the family firm Working with family has its ups and downs. Follow these tips from Workspace customers to avoid Armageddon and keep the business on track…

Don’t ignore family dynamics.

Manage bubbling issues so they don’t become a distraction and make sure you have clear reporting lines.

Have an independent board of directors; outside advice can provide a fresh perspective Treat your family as individuals.

Whether they’re employees or investors, put their role in writing.

Stay fair. Pay, promotions, criticism and praise should be even-handed, regardless of a person’s relationship to you.

same way, it’s worth saying something.”

On the plus side, if you fall out with a family member it’s easier to patch things up than with other colleagues. “It’s probably easier to forgive your dad,” says Scot.

Love at first sight Lee Thompson and Radha Vyas, The Flash Pack, Kennington Park

Radha pitched her travel business idea to Lee on their first date four years ago. Two months later, the couple had moved in together and launched The Flash Pack from their one-bedroom flat in Brixton.

The Flash Pack is a boutique holiday company offering small group holiday adventures for single people in their 30s and 40s.

It’s organised trips all over the world including Spain, Uganda and Sri Lanka, and has grown more than 400% since 2016.

The best thing about working together is the shared experience, according to Lee. “We’re on an amazing journey,” he says.

“There are highs and lows, but the highs are

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something you’d want to celebrate with the person you’re married to.”

It was important to establish clearly defined roles early on, however.

“It can be hard if you’ve got strong opinions and there’s crossover in what you’re both doing,” Lee says.

In the early days, there was no such thing as a work/life balance. Now, however, The Flash Pack is a team of 10, and Lee and Radha have their social life back again.

“Actually, we could do with switching off sometimes but we can’t help ourselves,” says Lee. Naysayers will say, “Never go into business with family”, but our Workspace customers prove that not only is it possible, it can be incredibly rewarding and phenomenally successful. ww

Choose people’s roles by talent, not a sense of obligation. Each member of the family can and should add particular value.

Encourage each generation to discover its purpose and direction. Having a sense of ownership is key.

Enjoy your family; it’s part of the fun.

Have you ever gone into business with family? What advice would you give?

Share your success stories or total nightmares with us by tweeting @WorkspaceGroup and #homeworkmag

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super connected

Top: Pillbox at Bethnal Green Bottom: Workspace’s Kennington HQ in a previous incarnation

“We used to get a paper memo every Friday to remind us to check our email daily”

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AS WORKSPACE CELEBRATES ITS 30TH BIRTHDAY, WE LOOK BACK AT ITS MAJOR MILESTONES. THE COMPANY’S SUCCESS COMES DOWN TO MORE THAN JUST BRICKS AND MORTAR; WE CELEBRATE THE DIVERSE WORKSPACE FAMILY… It’s 1987. The year of Michael Fish’s Great Storm gaffe, double-digit interest rates and the Black Monday stock crash. The now defunct Greater London Council wants to shed some of its properties; along come 12 investors with £16.7 million to form London Industrial and snap up 18 properties, mostly in the East End. 2017: London Industrial has been reincarnated as Workspace, sold its industrial portfolio and now has a portfolio of 68 properties that are home to 4,000 businesses, spanning 3.7 million sq ft. across the whole of London. How did the transformation happen?

The Workspace story

The ’90s heralded the company’s ascent xx

to the London Stock Exchange, a name change and even a brief venture into the West Midlands. But by 1999, Workspace had its eye firmly back on the property prize – London – and in 2007 converted to a Real Estate Investment Trust. It was around this time that Angus Boag joined the company as Development Director from Manhattan Loft Corporation. In the last 10 years, he’s seen a shift in focus from operating light industrial estates to developing business centres.

“We’ve been transforming the portfolio.

The focus [before] was on providing cheap space, it was all about the price. Since then, we’ve concentrated on refurbishing existing centres, bringing them up to modern standards and providing a much more dynamic business environment.”

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Workspace started out as a pioneer in affordable, flexible leasing. Small businesses could sign up as customers, safe in the knowledge they weren’t tied down by a burdensome contract. This flexibility has remained at the heart of Workspace’s offer.

However, in addition, it’s differentiator today is how it helps companies achieve their full potential through its network of superconnected, cleverly designed buildings and networking opportunities.

The change of tactics paid off.

Workspace survived the last recession with a steady stream of lettings, and emerged from it with a rising occupancy rate. A number of buildings have undergone extensive refurbishment; some of the most recent launches include Pill Box in Bethnal Green, Metal Box Factory in Southwark and Grand Union Studios in Ladbroke Grove. And an exciting refurbishment at Southbank House – the old Royal Doulton factory – is set to reopen in 2018 as China Works.

Workspace continues to expand its horizons. Traditionally focused on developing properties on the fringes of the city, such as Bethnal Green, the company has recently acquired buildings in more central locations, such as Fleet Street, Finsbury Circus and Fitzrovia.

The Workspace community

The one thing that hasn’t changed over the years is the vibrant businesses that rent at Workspace. Claire Dracup, Head of Support Services, is something of a veteran, having started out at Workspace more than 20 years ago, when the business was getting to grips with working online.

She says: “I recall we used to get a paper memo every Friday from Harry Platt (the then-CEO) to remind us to check our email daily. We were told we should get into the habit of checking it at least once per day!”

Claire fondly recalls her time as Centre Manager at The Leather Market when popular local pub, Juggler’s Arms, was a tenant. The owners had an upstairs office

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where they also ran a thriving juggling ball business, More Balls Than Most.

Today, Workspace is still home to a hugely diverse range of businesses that span almost every industry – from architecture to artificial intelligence, music to money management and lifestyle to luxury chocolates – plus many more.

Musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett started out their band Gorillaz at Westbourne Studios, and Music Bank at the Biscuit Factory supplies equipment to Glastonbury Festival and has stored equipment for big names like (Oasis’s) Gallagher brothers and Girls Aloud. The organisers of the 2012 London Olympics and Paralympic Games worked out of the Marshgate Business Centre in Newham, close to the action at the Olympic stadium.

The people are the best thing about Workspace, says Sabina Bathurst, Head of Lettings and an employee for coming up to 18 years.

“It’s like a family, that’s the biggest reason I’ve stayed here.” A belief in doing the right thing underpins the resources and relationships Workspace needs to make its business model work. “At Workspace, everyone tries to put the customers first; it’s probably the biggest difference between us and anyone else. We’re not just a landlord.”

How will Workspace look in another 30 years? We can’t tell you that, but we have our ideas as to how the workplace might look in five, 10 and 25 years. If you’re interested in the future of work, read our lead feature by award-winning design writer Anna Winston on page 34. The office will never be the same again. ww

A visualisation of The Frames, coming soon to Shoreditch

BUILDING THE FUTURE Keep an eye out for our latest developments…

Refurbishments underway The Barley Mow Centre, Chiswick Southbank House, Vauxhall (to be re-named China Works) The Leather Market, London Bridge Future business centres The Fuel Tank, Deptford The Frames, Shoreditch Brickfields, Hoxton

Discover The Workspace Advantage: customers Jamie Haselhurst at Jing Tea and Julia Janosa at Jigsaw Interior Architecture share their thoughts on how Workspace works for them on page 64

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the

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How will our work space look in the future? Will we still be working at our desks within the confines of four walls?

Anna Winston, award-winning architecture and design writer, investigates

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Futurist Jacob Morgan sees augmented reality in the future of the workspace

Baby boomers and millennials, can you remember your first office job? Your first work desk, computer and telephone? Now look around at your current Workspace environment. Rows of clunky computers have given way to coworking areas; in-trays are now inboxes; the fax machine has been buried; and we stamp our feet if the Wi-Fi takes more than a few seconds to upload on our digital devices when we walk into work.

Our workplaces are constantly evolving to keep up with the fastmoving times; Workspace is at the forefront of this transformation.

When Workspace brings a new business centre to life, architects and designers cast their minds forward to when the structure will be complete, in order to predict the needs of its inhabitants.

But much can change in a relatively short space of time – consider the extent to which smartphones have transformed our lives since Apple launched the iPhone a decade ago. The challenge is creating a workspace that caters to the smartphone generation that increasingly favours virtual contact, as well as previous generations that crave the human touch.

With that in mind, we’ve asked some of the leading office architects, designers, researchers and futurists what we might expect workplaces to look like in five years, 10 years and – perhaps a little more fancifully – 25 years’ time.

By that point, we might be fighting for survival. A third of UK jobs could be wiped out due to automation and artificial intelligence by 2030, predicts accounting giant PricewaterhouseCoopers. However, there is a ray of hope. Creative brain power – humanity’s last stand against the interminable efficiency of robots – will be more valuable than ever. Creating the right spaces for creativity to thrive could spell the difference between success and failure for the human workforce.

“Companies should be less concerned with what the future organisation will look like and more concerned with 5 SUPER CONNECTED workplace five years from now is likely building the future organisation that The to be a relatively familiar space, reflecting they would like to see exist” some of today’s major concerns. Chief among Jacob Morgan

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them is connectivity. Metal Box Factory in Southwark was one of the first buildings in London to be rated Wired Certified Platinum, an international standard for cutting-edge digital infrastructure. Here, Workspace customers are some of the best connected in the city with super-fast broadband speeds.

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wired differently

Best-selling author and futurist Jacob Morgan predicts that the next five years will be the dawn of a much more impactful shift towards the technology-orientated workplace of the future.

Augmented reality will advance beyond the realms of the popular Snapchat filter. Virtual reality may not replace the video conference and standard client product presentation just yet, but it has the potential to do so in the longer term as functionality improves.

Business Development Manager at creative and digital agency Forefront International at Grand Union Studios, Stefano Manganini, also sees this vision as a not too distant future. He predicts the next five years will signal the start of a movement towards the use of virtual reality in the office.

“The office space itself is going to become less and less relevant. What will become increasingly relevant, however, is the connection the workspace is able to give you to the rest of the world.

“Augmented reality will allow you to

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work within a flexible environment where it won’t even feel like you’re at work. You could be transported to the other side of the world, if you wish,” he says.

“You could still be in your office, but once you put on the glasses – or whatever they will be – you’ll feel like you’re on a beach, or a mountain, or wherever you feel comfortable.

This is the first stage, but it’s hard to predict what exciting technological developments the future will hold.”

John Robson, Head of Asset Management at Workspace, believes information on customer movements can better inform the design of business centres.

“Our digital infrastructure allows customers to gain access to Wi-Fi wherever they are in the building through their mobile devices. In turn, this generates masses of information detailing the flow of people through the space – ultimately allowing us to better understand our customers. For example, if we see people congregating in a certain area, we might put in more meeting tables and seating or insert a breakout space.

And… relax: RESET (Responsive Emotional Transformation) pods offer respite for busy workers

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Right: Future office building design by Forefront

This sort of data will become increasingly valuable to office providers.”

Sensor technology will give office managers more hard data on how staff use the spaces provided to them. If people like to meet and chat on the stairs, that might mean the office needs to add more relaxed meeting spaces. Empty desks could be reworked into collaborative spaces, with permanent desks replaced by hot-desking.

Wired differently

Flexibility and wellbeing will also be key drivers behind workplace design. The need for spaces that can change over time – expanding and shrinking to support the more entrepreneurial approach favoured by many of today’s most innovative businesses – is paramount. A desire for flexibility is inspiring open-plan spaces that can be easily divided, delineated for different uses and made more private or public.

This is wholly different from a standard open-plan office, with endless rows of identikit desks. Instead, the workspace resembles a cross between an office, a cafe or clubhouse, and someone’s home. Comfortable sofas and relaxation zones blend seamlessly alongside areas with standing desks that are designed for quick meetings. Variable densities of seating encourage different ways of thinking and interacting with fellow staff.

And despite living in a digital age, physical workplaces remain important because people still crave face-to-face interaction, explains Nick Gaskell, an architect at award-winning London studio Hawkins\Brown.

“As designers, we’re used to making physical spaces which maximise opportunities for serendipitous encounters between potential collaborators. These are the events that stimulate new and unexpected ideas and provide an enjoyable, creative environment.”

Private offices are already a rarity, but in five years they’re likely to be gold dust. The lack of private space in increasingly open-plan offices is not without its problems. Stressrelated illnesses cost businesses in Europe alone around £17 billion a year, attributed by some to a lack of privacy. Designers and office planners are starting to tackle the problem head on.

Dutch architecture firm UNStudio and social design company Scape recently debuted a series of seclusion pods that can be inserted

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into different types of office space in an attempt to tackle rising levels of stress among workers. RESET (Responsive Emotional Transformation) pods offer calming experiences to help staff unwind.

A futuristic solution could lie in a more responsive workplace that offers variety and escape for focused work. Meeting rooms might easily switch from boardroom to collaborative working spaces to relaxation areas with the flip of a screen. The press of a button could change not only the lighting, but also the furniture arrangement and more.

Generation gap

One of the biggest headaches for HR departments and designers is how different generations view the same workspace. As the age of retirement creeps up and fresh start-ups simultaneously challenge established businesses, we enter a period where the workspace will need to cater to baby boomers, Generation X, Generation Y, aka Millennials, and now Generation Z – the smartphone lot.

Each of these groups has a different idea of what work looks like. Generation Z comprises social media natives with high expectations when it comes to connectivity. Coaxing them away from peer-to-peer chat services and encouraging human-to-human offline interactions is a major challenge.

Associate Director at Greig and Stephenson Architects at Screenworks, Adam Parker, says that Generation Z’s use of technology should be “all about balance”, in order for workforces to function in a productive way.

“The virtual world allows you to do certain things efficiently,” he says, “but at the end of the day, there’s still a level of human connection that we need. People require and

crave face-to-face interaction.”

The shift towards a technology-focused workspace risks isolating Generation X. Parker envisions future communal workspaces being flanked by breakaway spaces to combat this. The spaces would enable tech-savvy individuals to enter virtual reality without technology dominating the environment.

The trend to try and cater to millennials with ping-pong tables, slides and other playground-like gimmicks is already dying.

Instead, the focus is shifting to creating welcoming spaces where staff can work collaboratively, but also find peace and quiet for focus.

Moreover, the generation-gap conundrum is exaggerated, believes Jeremy Myerson, Chair of Design at the Royal College of Art’s Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design and one of the world’s top experts on inclusive design.

“Research suggests that the common needs between generational cohorts at work are far greater than the differences between generations, so intergenerational conflict at work is over-hyped,” he says.

Regardless of age or expectations, everyone wants a healthier workplace, less noise and distraction, more fulfilling work and a better work-life blend or blur.

10 CULTIVATING CHANGE

By 2028, change will be afoot. Property developers like Workspace will begin to implement new working standards, guided by mass data collated on staff working habits. Trends in flexible working and technology – currently led by creative businesses – will begin to filter through to the rest of the workforce.

Club Workspace readers, imagine walking

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let’s

meet up INSTANT ACCESS, ANYWHERE We pride ourselves on our huge range of high-spec meeting rooms across London. You can book any of these by the hour and you don’t even need to be a customer. Whether you don’t have the space in your current office, you’re on the move, or you just need something as smart as your sales pitch, we can help.

TECH CITY Our rooms are kitted out with the latest technology, including business-grade Wi-Fi, 44” LED screens and Clickshare, a wireless presentation tool.

STAY FUELLED We’ve got award-winning cafes and restaurants on-site, to keep you and your team functioning at your best.

There are over 70 meeting rooms featured on our site for you to browse and book instantly, just visit workspace.co.uk/meeting-rooms

into your co-working space and switching your user options from “private” to “visible” at the flick of a switch. Instantly your phone or glasses flash up data sets about your surroundings. Who else is here? Who has visited recently? What are their interests?

Is anyone searching for a client or collaborator? Is your favourite armchair free?

This could be seen as an invasive, dystopian vision, but users could control which of their activities are recorded.

Gaskell says: “It’s about democratising that information by making it available to all. It’s also a continuation of the meshing of digital and physical worlds already occurring – the people who work out how to properly harness this trend will truly be onto something.”

Sensor technology has the potential to tackle some of the biggest recurring complaints from staff. Companies can analyse carefully cultivated data to decide whether or not flexible working, with varying locations and working hours, is best for their teams and how to reduce office running costs.

Italian architect Carlo Ratti is the Director of the Senseable City Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology – widely considered the world’s most important and radical school for real-world technological advancement.

His team have been working for some

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time on an office concept where everyone has their own unique “environmental bubble” that follows them from room to room. The “internet of things” gives individuals total control over the temperature around them and puts an end to the thermostat wars that will be familiar to anyone who has ever worked in an openplan, air-conditioned space.

The environmental bubble is already in motion. Ratti’s introduced the “temperature bubble” at Office 3.0, a recently opened building that houses the Agnelli Foundation in Turin, Italy. This application of connected technology and level of personal control could become commonplace in future.

“The revolution triggered by the internet of things is just warming up, and its effects will be more and more visible in our cities and buildings,” says Ratti.

The human touch

The constant interaction between the digital and physical layers of the office space is likely to be the primary concern for all office designers of the future, but the basic building blocks and principles of the workspace are unlikely to change all that much. Models of urban or office planning will be broadly similar to what we know today – we will always need horizontal floors for living, vertical walls to separate spaces and exterior enclosures to protect us

from outside.

The real change will be the line we draw between our homes, workspace and the city as a space. Anthony Bruce, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, has been carrying out a far-reaching investigation into the future of work for the last few years.

“People will conduct their work across multiple locations, and commuting will be largely unnecessary – flexible working patterns will be the norm and the workforce will be largely crowdsourced,” he predicts.

Imagine no set hours, simply a requirement to complete your work. Bruce believes this vision will become a reality.

“Technology will bring together networks of individuals who operate in an entrepreneurial way, with collaboration [being] the major driver of business performance.”

It is entirely possible that the development of augmented and virtual realities can propel an immersive workspace into our homes. As a result, more and more of our physical workplaces are likely to look and feel like co-working spaces.

Data harvested from sensors and the internet of things within an office space will give businesses the tools they need to make wider-reaching decisions as well.

“Smart assistants will be able to give us all sorts of useful information about

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wired differently

Left: Angular surfaces replace chairs Above: architect Carlo Ratti Right: a Forefront CGI block

“Never underestimate the importance of personal contact ” our organisations – for example, asking, ‘Who are the most successful teams in my company?’ or ‘I need to build a new team in LA, please suggest five recommendations for team members,’” says Morgan.

Despite being able to theoretically work from anywhere in the world, personal interactions will remain key to a successful workforce – and this is something that robots will struggle to contend with.

The one thing AI cannot compete on is creativity. As a result, it’s likely that both workers and management will prefer a designated workspace to come to – perhaps not every day, but regularly.

As Angus Boag, Workspace’s Development Director responsible for bringing business centres to life, explains, it all comes back to human relations – something we all need.

“Never underestimate the importance of personal contact with people. Humans like delineation between home and work, and I think they also like to be in a buzzy atmosphere with other people.”

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25 NO LIMITS

What the office will look like in 25 years is really anyone’s guess, but we can extrapolate from some of the trends that are likely to have an impact in just 10 years. Without getting too ahead of ourselves, it really is the stuff of science fiction.

The distinction between digital and physical realms may break down altogether. Objects could become responsive and change shape and density in response to virtual triggers. The implications of this are far-reaching. For example, you could walk into a room and it could be your office or your bedroom, depending on the setting you choose.

Dutch design studio RAAAF has used research about current lifestyle habits to rethink the office space of the future. It collaborated with artist Barbara Visser to create an office landscape, in which desks and chairs were replaced with a variety of angular surfaces.

These were designed to encourage leaning, perching and even lying down, in an attempt to tackle the health problems

of the sedentary lifestyle that’s evolved, as we become a society increasingly focused on mental, rather than physical, work.

LA architect Clive Wilkinson developed a bold concept for a giant layer of workspaces in the sky called The Endless Workplace, which would hover above London, to eliminate commuting and encourage businesses to use shared commodities. Let’s just hope the pollution improves before they start building.

Of course, RAAAF and Clive Wilkinson’s proposals might seem farfetched or alien today. Indeed, it’s quite challenging to imagine what the workspace will look like this far down the road.

Think like a futurist, says Morgan.

“In other words, [companies] should be less concerned with what the future organisation will look like and more concerned with building the future organisation that they would like to see exist.”

The takeaway from all this is clear: although not every prediction here may come true, we all have push to for the change we want to see, rather than wait for it to fall into our laps. ww

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In a space

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“An office space doesn’t need to be filled with the latest gimmicks or design fads”

What does your office space say about you? How a place of work is furnished speaks volumes about a company and its people.

Architecture and design writer Alyn Griffiths speaks to the experts at Workspace about the furniture that surrounds us…

The best office designers carefully source items that embody a company’s organisational culture, rather than heading straight to IKEA or an established office furniture supplier. Dodds & Shute is a design consultancy with a decade of industry experience working with architects and interior designers, based at Workspace’s Vox Studios.

“The most important thing for us is to know our client and understand what they want their furniture to say about their place of work,” says Creative Director, Nick Shute.

“How do they want their clients to feel when they turn up for a meeting and how does it make their staff feel about working there?”

The trend for wacky workplaces that emerged as a result of the tech start-up boom

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in the early years of the millennium has been superseded by a more sophisticated approach to workplace design that promotes, comfort, flexible working and a homely feel. Slides and ping-pong tables have given way to loungelike breakout areas and kitchens that function as key spaces for impromptu gatherings and conversations. “The workplace has become much more of a social landscape and, as such, needs to include spaces for all aspects of social interaction and existence,” says Liz Close of interior design studio Generate, based at Workspace’s HQ in Kennington Park.

“If you want your teams to go above and beyond the nine-to-five, you should ensure they have the home comforts that support them in doing so.”

Inevitably, designers looking to create this homely feel in commercial spaces are increasingly turning to brands that specialise in residential products rather than traditional office furniture. When working on projects for start-ups or companies in industries such as marketing, graphic design or social media, Dodds & Shute likes to specify furniture and accessories that haven’t been used before in this sector. Choosing products from young design brands like Menu, and &tradition

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The Grammatik team at Pill Box and Liz Close from Generate at Kennington Park

“ It’s about creating space that allows the people in it to unleash their full potential, which means offering much more than just a desk, chair and four walls” Liz Close

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enables them to build environments that feel fresh and unique.

stand-up brainstorming sessions, hot-desking, team meetings or lunches.

Tip: Explore emerging or littleknown brands such as Heerenhuis and Aditi Studios to create an office that feels unique and contemporary

Tip: Plants remove harmful gases from the air and contribute towards creating more tranquil and healthy environments that help staff to feel relaxed

For the increasing number of small- or medium-sized creative agencies looking to design their own offices, striking a balance between affordability, style and flexible functionality is a key consideration.

When creative marketing and PR agency Grammatik at The Pill Box was looking to move to larger premises, furniture supplier Opendesk matched desks and storage systems from its range of locally made plywood products to the requirements of Grammatik’s workforce.

“When you have a new office and you want a look and feel that’s planned and not just thrown together, it’s hard to achieve without hiring an interior designer,” says Grammatik CEO, Ian Tomalin-Hall.

“If you want quality and something that really fits your needs, you have to go bespoke, and Opendesk is a great middle ground for growing businesses.”

Opendesk offers innovative designs such as its Breakout Table that can be used for

Bespoke office solutions are increasingly seen as a vital part of a company’s identity, as well as a way to improve employee satisfaction, leading to increased productivity and staff retention. Furnishing these spaces requires a thorough understanding of an organisation’s character, combined with a knowledge of the design industry that goes beyond the standard office catalogues and interior design magazines. “An office space doesn’t need to be filled with the latest gimmicks or design fads to be a great place to work,” concludes Liz Close. “It’s about creating space that allows the people in it to unleash their full potential, which means offering much more than just a desk, chair and four walls.” ww Find design inspiration at generatestudio.com. Browse Creative Spaces on page 46 to see how Workspace customers experiment and put their own stamp on their space

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What’s hot Does your company have good taste in office furniture?

How many of these do you have in your workspace?

1) T he Cargo armchair from Heerenhuis has a lounge-like look and hardy waxed-leather upholstery.

2) Neon lighting introduces a fun and ambient detail to breakout areas.

3) O pendesk’s flexible Breakout Table can be used for standing or seated working and team lunches.

4) V itra’s Pacific task chair combines essential ergonomic features with a pared-back design.

5) Rawside’s Workable is simple, yet sturdy. All of Rawside’s furniture is designed and manufactured in London.

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2 3

4

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Workspace is home to an incredible array of imaginative customers. See how they personalise their spaces to make them their own, keeping workers happy and impressing clients

Output Group A family of creative businesses that helps to shape top brands like Nike and MTV, Output Group recently moved into The Record Hall near Hatton Garden and quickly put its own stamp on the new space Colourful mood boards are dotted around this 2,580 sq. ft. space, which is interspersed with breakout areas and divided up with great slabs of floor-to-ceiling reclaimed wood.

The Visual Reality suite (above centre) is paramount for forward-thinking Output Group, which is making huge strides in augmented and visual reality as consumers want to experience products before clicking Buy. Unit 220, The Record Hall

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CM Delta This fashion distribution company has kitted out its 265 sq. ft. space and 3,500 sq. ft. office at Grand Union Studios in Ladbroke Grove with a dizzying selection of the unique brands it stocks at UK retailers The CM Delta workspace is a pop of colour showcasing the edgy brands it works with, such as Happy Socks, Sneaky Steve Shoes and Komono eyewear (check out our front cover star and Workspace customer, Emily Bendell, rocking a pair of futuristic Komono shades).

Given how hectic the fashion world is, the company is always superbusy, so the team felt it essential to create this little oasis away from the bustle of their office to show off their brands at their best.

Unit 1.14 Grand Union Studios

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NO LIMITS: THE SMARTOLOGY STORY MARK BEMBRIDGE, CEO OF MEDIA TECH COMPANY SMARTOLOGY, TELLS US HOW THE COMPANY IS FLOURISHING AT WORKSPACE IN ITS MISSION TO REVOLUTIONISE “SMART ADVERTISING” For a small business, early-stage growth can be as daunting as it is exciting. Adaptability is key as you take on more customers, tweak your business offering and expand your workforce accordingly. Workspace’s dynamic ‘No Limits’ environment and flexible offering enable fastgrowth businesses to flourish during this crucial time

Smart advertising

Mark Bembridge, CEO of Smartology, is in the middle of this growth phase. Now in its fourth Workspace office, at Metal Box Factory in Southwark, his company is on a mission to disrupt online media. Instead of relying on cookies (data sent to the user’s browser) and demographic information to target ads at consumers, Smartology uses complex artificial intelligence (AI) to read and understand articles before matching them with the most relevant ads. Smart advertising, in other words.

“If someone’s reading about Japanese shareholder-friendly policies on Bloomberg, we can inject a piece of content from iShares [an ETF provider] about Japanese stocks into the website,” says Bembridge in the breakout area at Metal Box Factory.

This tailored approach, where readers are shown ads about topics they’re already interested in, results in an engagement rate up to 10 times higher than traditional behavioural-targeting methods.

The term artificial intelligence refers to a range of ways in which machines are

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mimicking human cognitive functions.

A fast-growing field, AI can be applied to anything from self-driving cars or chess-playing computers to data analysis.

Smartology uses two types of AI: machine learning – something of a buzzword – is when computers use algorithms to teach themselves and make better predictions; natural language processing is the way they understand and interact with human language.

As privacy becomes increasingly important with the arrival of new data protection legislation next year, Bembridge feels that web cookies are on their way out. Cookies have come under fire because they store information about a person’s movements on the internet and then share it.

Smartology’s non-intrusive approach also means that it’s left alone by adblockers, which can be a huge problem in the industry.

The company has been whitelisted by Ad Plus, the world’s largest adblocking firm.

“They’ve acknowledged that we add value to the user’s journey,” says Bembridge.

Smartology has already worked with some of the world’s premium publishers and media giants, including the BBC, Financial Times, Thomson Reuters, The Economist and The Wall Street Journal. Last year the company won Best Technology Platform at the British Media Awards – no small achievement given the Silicon Valley startups it was up against.

A major problem for brands and publishers today is the loss of money to middlemen. “The brand starts with a

marketing budget, which goes through a planning agency, then a trading desk, then a demand-side platform, then an ad exchange, then a supply-side platform and then to the publisher,” says Bembridge. “By the time the publisher sees the money, only 30-40% of it is left.” Smartology removes several of these steps, ensuring that publishers receive around 70% of the original budget.

The Workspace advantage

Thanks to this unique model, the company is growing fast. Having originally launched in 2010 with a small amount of private funding, Smartology rebranded in 2012 and moved into a small basement office at Workspace’s The Print Rooms in Southwark.

“Five of us worked our socks off day and night to get the whole thing off the ground,” says Bembridge. Having moved up to the third floor for more light, they relocated nearby to a larger space at the brand new Metal Box Factory three years ago.

Since then, the company has grown from 12 to 34 staff members, 30 of whom are in London. It moved offices again in January to accommodate the expanding workforce.

“From our perspective, staying within Workspace makes a lot of sense,” says Bembridge. “Not only the building, the people and the atmosphere, but also the fact that it’s flexible for us to be able to move whenever we need to.”

Bembridge considers this flexibility crucial for a small and growing business that is wary of getting tied down too soon.

“Long office leases lock you in for three to

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SMART FACTS Date founded: 2010 Founder: Mark Bembridge Workspace location: Metal Box Factory, Southwark Motto: “Putting content where it counts” Number of employees: 34 Number of clients: 50 global brands and 20 premium publishers

“ From our perspective, staying within Workspace makes a lot of sense” five years, and planning that far ahead isn’t easy when you’re at the early stage of high growth,” he says.

Thanks to Workspace’s ‘No Limits’ ethos, exponential growth can happen with minimum hassle – and moving into a bigger office is also great for company morale.

“It’s very motivating to take your staff into a much larger space,” says Bembridge.

“It looks fantastic and it’s a massive boost to the team.”

The design-conscious Metal Box Factory, with its café and striking full-height atrium, has helped attract and retain staff, as well as wowing visiting clients. “Media technology is all about being cutting-edge and you need to be in an environment that shows that off a little bit,” says Bembridge.

The building’s communal spaces have also enabled serendipitous meetings to happen. Bembridge is currently considering working with a marketing agency on the second floor at Metal Box, as well as an innovative advertising company on the

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fifth. “Yesterday, I think I bumped into five different people I know from the building, which is extremely helpful,” he says.

What’s next for Smartology? Last year the company saw strong growth in the US and Asia, so building capability in those areas is key. In terms of staff, the focus up until now has been on putting together a crack team of engineers.

“Only more recently have we really started focusing on building our commercial and sales team,” says Bembridge. Whatever exciting times lie ahead for Smartology, it has fully embraced being part of the Workspace family – and seem content to stay that way. ww

Light-filled work spaces, breakout rooms and the chance to expand spatially as the company grows has made Workspace the natural home for Smartology: something workers and clients appreciate alike

Read about the exciting developments at other companies at Workspace in our news section on page 10. If your company has an inspiring growth story you wish to share on our website, blog or in the next issue of the magazine, please email homeworkeditor@workspace.co.uk

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no limits

PITCH PERFECT

Your company’s potential is limitless, but the one thing that can hold back growth is insufficient funding. With a rising number of new entrepreneurs in the UK hungry for investment, how can you hone your pitch to stand out from the crowd? Jennifer Bollen finds out what investors want to hear from companies before they sign the cheque

Start-ups

The competition is tough. Figures from trade body StartUp Britain show almost 658,000 new companies launched in 2016, up from 440,600 five years earlier. So you’ll have to think hard about your fundraising story – a concise summary of what is exciting about your business to an investor – before any potential meetings.

Sam Myers, a principal at venture firm Balderton Capital, says: “This will be some combination of what is happening in the market they’re in, why they’re at the heart of this important trend… All other content in a pitch should relate back to this fundamental story or investment thesis.”

You need to capture investors’ attention and make them eager to learn more, he says. “If the most exciting part of your fundraising story is how fast you’re growing, then make sure you show that graph early on. If you’re an early-stage company with an impressive founding team and strong first hires, make sure you show the team slide upfront.”

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Fast-growing businesses

Put your growth prospects at the centre of your presentation, which must be “simple and significant”, says Sara Gordon, Creative Director at online florist Bloom & Wild.

Founded in 2013, Bloom & Wild showed a team of investors its impressive growth rate of 35% per month and secured £3.75 million in early 2017.

You need to show investors you’re solving a true customer need: Bloom &

Wild’s bouquets are designed to fit through a standard letterbox. Gordon says: “I’d explain the problem you’re solving, and give the investor a narrative they can relate to. I’d also share some high-level numbers on current and projected growth, as well as how you’re acquiring and retaining quality customers as you scale and build the brand. Acquisition and retention are both important.”

It may sound old-fashioned in today’s digital world, but bringing handouts to the presentation helps. The people you want to impress are more likely to remember you if you give them something to take away, says Joanna Hill, interim Chief Executive at The Start Up Loans Company. “It looks professional, no matter how small the idea or how new the business is.”

Get the better of your nerves on presentation day by practising plenty beforehand. Hill says: “Try out your pitch in front of your family and friends and repeat your USPs [unique selling points] over and over when you have spare time, such as when you’re travelling.”

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Left: Joanna Hill, interim Chief Executive at The Start Up Loans Company Below: Sara Gordon’s bouquets for florist Bloom & Wild are designed to fit through a standard letterbox

“ There’s never been a better time to seek investment” Established businesses

It’s vital the whole team brings energy to the table to project the right image.

Graphite Capital meets with hundreds of businesses each year, says Omar Kayat, a partner at the private equity firm. The worst ones have the lowest energy levels.

“They should be engaging, answering questions directly and succinctly, while encouraging other members of the team to contribute,” he says. “Being on top of the financials is a must and the team need to demonstrate a clearly articulated and realistic growth plan, acknowledging the areas where they may need some help.”

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Private equity firms typically want businesses to double in size in five years – so how would you take your company to the next level with a £100 million investment? Find the balance between an exciting plan and a realistic one.

As an established business, banks may be happy to lend to you. Lenders home in on credit risk – resilience, cash generation and covenants – to ensure the business can survive tough times. Will Brexit affect your company?

Be prepared to explain how your business can withstand a downward dip, as lenders will model a number of stressed scenarios to ensure it can satisfy loan obligations. ww

Find out more about how you can boost your company’s coffers by attending Informed Funding events. More details in the news section on page 10

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Workspace Book Corner We asked four customers which books inspired and helped them to find success in business.

Here are their top recommendations…

Lee Thompson Co-founder at FlashPack, (Kennington Park) “I’ve read numerous books by business owners but this is by far the best – it’s a brutally honest account of setting up a company. Even though Nike is probably the biggest brand in the world – every new business can relate to Knight’s stories.”

Nike Co-founder and ex-Board Chairman Phil Knight shares the inside story of the company’s early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world’s most iconic, gamechanging, and profitable brands.

Fresh out of business school, Knight borrowed $50 from his father and launched a company with one simple mission: import high-quality, low-cost running shoes from Japan. Selling the trainers from the trunk of his Plymouth Valiant, Knight grossed $8,000 in that first year, 1963. Today, Nike’s annual sales top $30 billion. In this age of start-ups, Knight’s Nike is the gold standard, and its swoosh is more than a logo. A symbol of grace and greatness, it’s one of the few icons instantly recognised in every corner of the world.

But Knight, the man behind the swoosh, has always been a mystery. Now, in a memoir that’s surprising, humble, unfiltered, funny and beautifully crafted, he tells his story at last.

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business books

Tom Harvey

Adam Tranter

Lucy Woodhouse

Co-founder at Spoke (Metal Box Factory)

Director at Fusion Media (The Record Hall)

Co-founder at Claudi & Fin (Parkhall Business Centre)

“ While not technically a business book, Moneyball by Michael Lewis offers insight into how to think differently to achieve things, sometimes important for a small business.”

“ Fusion Media gives every new starter a copy of Paul Arden’s It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want To Be. It’s a very quick read but perfectly encapsulates the kind of thinking and doing that we encourage.”

“ Tessa Stuart has written two brilliant books for food start-ups: Packed, a guide to getting your brand launched and noticed on the supermarket shelves, and Flying Off The Shelves, a food entrepreneur’s guide to selling.”

Michael Lewis is perhaps better known for his entertaining books on finance like Liar’s Poker and The Big Short, but he delves into the world of sport to tell this true story. In a way, this book is about finance. Lewis noticed that baseball team Oakland Athletics was high in the rankings, yet was operating on a slim budget compared with its rivals. Moneyball is a quest for the secret of success in baseball. In a narrative full of fabulous characters and brilliant excursions into the unexpected, Lewis follows the low-budget Oakland As’ visionary General Manager, Billy Beane, and the strange brotherhood of amateur baseball theorists. They are all in search of new baseball knowledge – insights that will give the little guy who is willing to discard old wisdom the edge over big money. Lewis wrote the book because he fell in love with the story, but the idea for it came well before he had a good reason to write it. It began with an innocent question: how did one of the poorest teams in baseball win so many games?

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A pocket bible for the talented and timid alike to help make the unthinkable thinkable and the impossible possible. The world’s top advertising guru, Paul Arden, offers up his wisdom on issues as diverse as problem solving, responding to a brief, communicating, playing your cards right, making mistakes, and creativity – all endeavours that can be applied to aspects of modern life. He spent a stormy 18 years in advertising and then found his spiritual home at Saatchi & Saatchi in 1977, where he worked for 15 years. During his time there, he was responsible for some of its biggest campaigns, such as British Airways, Silk Cut, Anchor Butter and Fuji. He now runs Arden Sutherland-Dodd, a London-based film production company. This uplifting and humorous little book provides a unique insight into the world of advertising and is a quirky compilation of quotes, facts, pictures, wit and wisdom – all packed into easy-to-digest, bite-sized spreads. If you want to succeed in life or business, this book is a must.

Packed: How did the founders of Innocent drinks, G’nosh and Moma beat thousands of other food entrepreneurs to win a space on supermarket shelves? And once they were there, how did they win the battle to convince sceptical, time-strapped shoppers to try them over more established brands? Tessa Stuart knows, because she helped them do it. In this practical, inspirational book, she draws on 15 years in the food industry to reveal a proven set of principles for becoming the next household name in the aisles.

Flying Off The Shelves: “I’ve got my food product on the shelves, now what do I do?” Whether you trade on Amazon, through your own online shop or just from your first market stall, Flying Off The Shelves: The Food Entrepreneur’s Guide to Selling, includes tried and tested techniques from successful food businesses.

Lucy Woodhouse (left) and Meriel Kehoe, Co-founders of Claudi & Fin

“ I’ve got my food product on the shelves, now what do I do?”

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the health advantage

work to live What gives an employee or business the edge? The innovators? The risk-takers? What about those who prioritise health? The latter may not spring to mind, but it could be the very thing that sets the top one per cent apart. Engaging in even just five minutes of mindfulness meditation a day could make all the difference…

Global multinationals already invest in smart healthcare initiatives – Google offices have on-site chiropractors, massage therapists and physical therapists.

Head down to law firm Allen & Overy in Spitalfields, and you’ll find a resident doctor and dentist to keep its lawyers fighting fit. From less absenteeism to better mental health, workplace wellness is a trend that could pay dividends in the long run.

Here, HomeWork magazine interviews the experts to find out how you can boost your physical and mental health – as well as eat and sleep clean – to be the very best version of you at work.

The physical advantage

Good physical health is the foundation of wellbeing. Numerous studies have shown that regular exercise helps to release feel-good hormones (endorphins) and can reduce the number of employee sick days.

Tom Cheeseman, Co-founder and Director of City Wellness, which provides bespoke wellness packages to the workplace, says exercise can help to set you up for the day or relieve office stress.

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to fitness, he says. Everyone has a slightly different chronobiology and circadian rhythm, meaning that some people find it optimal to train in the morning before work, others in the evening.

Work long hours? Find a flexible 24-hour gym, such as the PureGym at Workspace’s headquarters in Canterbury Court, Kennington.

Fitness retailer Sweaty Betty offers online exercise videos for those who prefer the flexibility of a home workout, plus hundreds of free classes at its stores across the UK every day of the week.

Workout al-desko

Make simple tweaks from the comfort of your own desk. “Simple static stretches include wrist flexion and extension exercises that are

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Designing a healthier workplace Workspace is at the cutting edge of wellbeing in the workforce. We took part in a Wellbeing Lab programme, run by the UK Green Building Council, which aims to radically transform the way the built environment in the UK is planned, designed, constructed, maintained and operated.

The seven-month knowledge-exchange programme guided the 11 chosen participants through how to measure and implement best practice in health, wellbeing and productivity principles. This covered things like lighting and air quality, to how workers feel about their workplace.

The wellbeing survey showed that staff at Workspace’s head office in Kennington are very happy with the space, in particular the variety of workspaces, the on-site gym and the design features. Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) testing data highlighted how to make simple changes to improve customer comfort, like installing more blinds to reduce glare and hanging attractive artwork. Workspace will trial IEQ sensors in its head office to gather customer data, which can better inform refurbishment of existing Workspace sites and new business centres.

“Static stretches are fantastic for those who type all day�

Tom Cheeseman

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Below: Wellbeing session at Fresh Perception

xxxxxxxxx

sitting pretty Rishi Loatey from the British Chiropractic Association gives us the lowdown on how to remove the ache from a desk job…

- The top of your computer screen should be positioned at eye level. If it is too low, use a computer stand.

A large book or ream of paper can be used as long as the screen is safely positioned.

- Relax your whole back into the seat, making sure your bottom is at the back of the chair. The shoulder blades should be touching the back of the chair and head against the headrest.

-Y our feet should be flat on the floor, hips positioned slightly above your knees. Keep elbows at desk height. A chair with an armrest is preferable because this gives the arms much-needed support.

- With the rise of hot-desking and freelancing, laptops are becoming more popular. Laptop users should try and raise their computer so the screen is at eye level, and plug in a regular keyboard and mouse if possible because this allows them to adopt a more natural and comfortable position.

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fantastic for individuals who spend a large proportion of their working day typing,” says Cheeseman. “Complement this with light massage of the forearms to ease tension.”

Standing desks are great for employees with postural pain. Placing the spine in its natural anatomical position can help to maintain its longevity and optimal health.

If opting for a standing desk, gradually build into this new position as it will initially put a strain on the body.

Walk to meetings (recent research from Stanford University found walking leads to increases in creative thinking) or get up from your desk every half hour. Six million Brits can’t even manage 10 minutes a month, something that’s proven to harm health.

“Not only will walking improve your mood, mental clarity and reduce stress, it could assist exercise recovery from earlier in the day, by preventing blood pooling and potentially aid muscle soreness,” says Cheeseman.

The mental advantage

TOP TIP: Slouching over your desk?

“A simple tip I offer clients is to place a finger on the middle of the ribcage and then feel yourself opening up to a neutral spine position. Raise both arms above your head and feel the side of your back loosening and your shoulders freeing up.”

Train your brain

Stress accounts for almost half (45%) of all working days lost due to ill health. James Routledge, founder of mental health gym Sanctus in Shoreditch, believes the state of our minds should be viewed like physical health. “If you could improve the mental wellbeing of your workforce by about 1020%, imagine what that could do to your business, not just in terms of absenteeism, but growth.”

It’s a view that Workspace customer Leanne Spencer – entrepreneur, performance coach, TEDx speaker, author and Founder of Bodyshot Performance – shares. Spencer ditched a stressful career in sales to set up her business helping clients improve their health, fitness and nutrition.

“It’s not just about revenue,” she says. “It’s about attracting and retaining talent and just generally being better human beings in terms of responsibility.”

Spencer uses a “disconnect and reconnect” concept to stay on track mentally, taking five minutes every other hour to disconnect – metaphorically and literally – from work to do something calming like meditation.

These exercises could be the secret weapon in protecting mental wellbeing.

Hope Bastine, a mindfulness psychology

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WORK MEAL PLAN

body talk

Editor Farah Khalique checks her health with the latest tech

Running a business takes heaps of time and energy; if you can’t stomach the thought of adding “Sort out my wellbeing” to your todo list, then help is at hand! Leave it to Leanne Spencer and her team at BodyShot Performance at Parkhall Business Centre to remove the guesswork around health. Spencer is a big believer in the power of wearable tech to monitor things like daily activity and sleep cycles, so you can make positive changes.

Our Editor, Farah Khalique, gets the Bodyshot treatment.

“My life can be pretty hectic at times so I want to get a measure of my stress levels and whether I’m getting enough downtime.

I try out the Firstbeat Lifestyle Assessment, which measures my heart rate variability; I wear a heart monitor for 72 hours straight and fill in a simple daily journal detailing my activities. Apart from when I remove it to take a shower, I mostly forget it’s even there. At the end of the 72 hours, Leanne downloads all the data and walks me through it. It’s fascinating, I can see my stress responses charted throughout the day (bright red spikes!) as well as my recovery periods (a more calming shade of green).

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I’m somewhat alarmed by the sea of red, but Leanne reassures me that stress is not necessarily a negative thing. “You want to lift your heart rate up, and do things that are brisk and vigorous,” she says. I get a lifestyle assessment score that measures my stress and recovery balance, restorative effects of sleep, health effects of physical activity and energy expenditure. The biggest takeaway for me is that I can get away with less than seven hours’ sleep, but I should hit the pillow before midnight to ensure a good sleep cycle.”

Spencer’s advice: 1. B uild in additional recovery time during the day. This could be achieved by meditation, breathing exercises or just by taking a break and disconnecting from your devices. Take a break at least every hour and you’ll not only build in more recovery, but will also find your concentration span and productivity improves.

Aim to incorporate essential vitamins and minerals, plus protein, healthy fats, and fibre to keep you full. Don’t forget your veggies!

BREAKFAST: Start the day with eggs.

Set them to boil before hopping in the shower, then either serve with toast or take them to work.

TIMESAVER OPTION: Grab a filling breakfast smoothie with milk or a milk alternative, oats, berries and crushed seeds. Vitamin C and phytonutrient antioxidants promote disease prevention.

LUNCH: Grain-based salad with chicken and avocado, or a vegetarian option like lentil or bean-based soup with wholegrain bread. Resist the temptation of white foods teamed with a sugary snack and a soft drink. These can cause blood sugar imbalances, and foods rich in unhealthy fats can leave you feeling lethargic as your body digests them.

REMEMBER: Stay hydrated to avoid feeling foggy and unfocused. Try “sexing up” water with cucumber, strawberries, basil, mint, rosemary or citrus fruits.

2. Build a bit more high-intensity exercise into your day, as well as moderate exercise and a relatively constant amount of low-level activity.

This will aid sleep as well improve your general fitness levels.

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the health advantage

The team at Sanctus

House of Voga class at Pill Box in Bethnal Green

Class action Get into shape in London

1. BOOM CYCLE The new Hammersmith studio comes with a co-working area – riders can catch up on a few emails while sipping on a coffee or a postworkout protein shake. boomcycle.co.uk 2. SPEEDFLEX A HIIT-based workout in the City offering half-hour classes.

Maximum sweat for minimum time. speedflex.com 3. HOUSE OF VOGA. Vogue-inspired dance meets yoga with an ’80s house beat – a fun way to strengthen mid and body. houseofvoga.com 4. MIGUEL’S BOXING GYM A mental wellbeing boxing class that marries the expertise of a psychologist with the fitness capabilities of boxing. miguelsboxinggym.co.uk 5. BOOTCAMP PILATES For a workout designed to help core and posture, any desk-related niggles will be relieved with reformer pilates exercises. bootcamppilates.com

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“Make sure you make time for food!” expert at Fresh Perception, hosts corporate wellbeing workshops.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, Bastine recommends focusing on breathing. From a physiological perspective, oxygen and airflow is crucial to our brain activity.

Deep breathing through the nose quickly reregulates our heart rate. Try inhaling and exhaling for equal amounts of time – inhale for four seconds, pause, and then exhale for four seconds.

Deadlines stressing you out? Then you need a “rest and restore”, says Bastine. “If you’re tackling one deadline after another without a restoration period, you’ll fall into an energy debt – and it’s not a sustainable way of living,” she says.

TOP TIP: Give yourself a breather after completing a deadline and be willing to negotiate the next deadline if it comes too soon, or ask for help to spread the load.

The diet advantage

Nutrition is intrinsic to performance at work. Rob Hobson, registered nutritionist and Head of Nutrition at health supplement retailer Healthspan, explains that missed meals and punishing work schedules can affect nutrient intake and impact energy levels, mood and overall health, including

digestion. However, contrary to perceived knowledge, rigid meal times aren’t the beall-and-end-all. He says: “Just make sure you make time for food!”

Foods in their most natural state offer a source of nutrients, such as B vitamins, magnesium and iron that are involved in energy metabolism and healthy red blood cell production.

Vitamin D – the supplement du jour – is a no-brainer during the winter months when you arrive at and leave work in the dark, says Hobson.

On top of bone health, it boosts immunity and regulation of cell growth.

Scientists at the University of Surrey recommend the D3 form of the vitamin, as it could be twice as effective as vitamin D2.

A word of warning, however: choose your supplements wisely. Hobson says: “Very high-strength supplements, especially individual nutrients, can inhibit the absorption of other nutrients from food.” ww Our Wellness at Work theme at the Workspace Business Insights Dinner in July proved to be popular, with plenty of panel discussion and helpful tips for improving work/life balance.

Find out more by searching Wellness at Work on workspace.co.uk

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jargon buster

Space

There really are “diamonds in the sky” for those who’ve figured out how to make money out of space. And it’s not just aerospace companies like Elon Musk’s SpaceX or Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin; several earthling start-ups use high-quality images from satellites to provide innovative services. Scottish start-up Astrosat harvests space data to offer insights on coastal erosion, or even to help clients plan disaster-relief operations. The company says: “Earth observation can be a highly useful tool for smart decision-making.”

talk tech lingo…

Technology is a part of all our lives, but how many of us are experts? Do you mix up your AI with APIs, and nod along silently when blockchain is debated at dinner parties?

Our handy jargon buster demystifies the biggest trends in tech…

Blockchain

Ancient Egyptians used clay tablets and papyrus to record financial information on ledgers – nowadays we have the blockchain. A digital ledger that verifies transactions like money transfers by crosschecking a network of thousands of computers – a structure that is said to make the blockchain tamper-proof – it’s the scaffolding for alternative web currency Bitcoin. However, its applications go beyond exchanging virtual money. London-based Everledger uses blockchain to keep track of the ownership of over one million diamonds. This allows gem traders to know straight away whether a stone’s provenance is legitimate, thus weeding out blood diamonds.

Artificial intelligence (AI)

No, this doesn’t mean aliens (that’s ET) – although it could remind you of the ship computer HAL from the film 2001: A Space Odyssey. An AI is a computer that has been trained to recognise patterns (somebody’s face shape, or words that usually appear in spam emails), and make related predictions. This is typically done by feeding the computer masses of information – cat pics, emails, medical data – using a technique called machine learning.

Workspace customer DigitalMR at Vox Studios uses artificial intelligence for market research and customer insights. It works with brands and organisations to understand what’s being said about them on social media as part of its data-crunching services. Recent advances in machine learning, together with the increased availability of internet-generated data, have the potential to revolutionise a broad array of sectors from social media to science. But leading brains like Stephen Hawking, Bill Gates and Elon Musk warn that AI could take over the human race. That’s right, Skynet from The Terminator could be a reality.

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homeworkmagazine

Internet of things

Can you guess what this one means? Imagine if your possessions – e.g. your car, mobile phone and home alarm system – could talk to one another over the internet. By pairing sensors and network connectivity, inanimate objects, from machinery to buildings, and even moving vehicles, can share information with each other and respond accordingly.

IoT technology is at the core of Autodrive, a UK governmentbacked effort to create a fleet of driverless and connected vehicles. Its cars can talk to each other in order to avoid collisions, or get information from roadside beacons flagging up speed limits.

Read how the internet of things can help improve the workplace on page 34.

“ That’s right, Skynet from The Terminator could be a reality” Chatbots

Progress in AI is behind another – more down-to-earth – trend: chatbots. If you shop online, you’ve probably seen them, the little chat box that pops up in the corner of your screen offering instant help.

Although most of them aren’t great conversationlists, they’re smart enough to answer basic requests for information. From helping a customer find the right pair of shoes to playing doctor – computer systems chatting with humans are on the rise. UK start-up Your.MD has trained a chatbot with NHS information, so that it can talk to people and give advice to help them self-diagnose health conditions.

Alas, if you’re seriously ill it won’t be able to cure you: it’ll just advise you to call the doctor.

workspacegroup.co.uk

Probably not what a chatbot is

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CAPITAL COFFEE: LONDONERS LOVE THE MAGIC BEAN, BUT DOES OUR COFFEE CRAZE HAVE A DARK SIDE? A trendy new reusable cup from Cup Club

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homeworkmagazine

“The UK produces half a million tonnes of waste from coffee grounds each year”

London is fuelled by coffee, but our habit also produces a lot of waste.

Happily, some companies are trying to change that In 2015, Britons drank 2,098 billion cups of coffee away from home – that’s two and a half cups for every cup of tea. Cappuccinos are the most popular, followed by lattes, then the good old americano. It’s clear: we’re no longer partial to any kind of brew, we’re coffee connoisseurs.

The cup of coffee that’s probably on your desk right now is testament to the bean’s ability to wake you up, keep you alert, help with weight loss and even, as a recent study in the Netherlands revealed, improve your liver’s health.

London Bridge’s Club Workspace provides its members with coffee from Pact Coffee – a delivery service based at The Biscuit Factory – where it roasts its beans, too. The coffee specialists work directly with producers so they know where their magic beans come from: whether it’s Fazenda Chapada, a Brazilian bean with hints of milk-chocolate toffee, or the Guatemalan Filadelfia Natural, that’ll bring to mind strawberries and cream.

Livewire Kitchen, the cafe at Vox Studios in Vauxhall, roasts its beans at Beanworks, a modern artisan roaster based in Northamptonshire. After testing more than 30 types of roast, the company settled on two types of coffee: one a single bean, the other a blend of Ethiopian, Guatemalan, Indian and Brazilian beans. A wholesale coffee and machine supplier, Beanworks trains staff, taking them from novices to expert baristas, and instructing them in the craft of latte art.

“There are still a lot of latte drinkers out there,” says Zoe Watkins, Co-founder at Livewire Kitchen. “But newer drinks like the ‘piccolo’ are also gaining popularity.” In case you didn’t know, that’s a single espresso shot topped up with steamed milk in a demitasse glass. And with around 150-200 cups sold per day, that’s a lot of coffee.

workspacegroup.co.uk

However, there is a dark side to Britain’s caffeine addiction: the UK produces half a million tonnes of waste from coffee grounds each year. Happily, there are people who are looking to turn that into an opportunity. Bio-bean is an innovative London company that transforms waste ground coffee into fuel pellets that are used to heat buildings.

A bigger beast, Nestlé, uses the energy to cook food products at 22 of its 28 coffee factories. Incineration has reduced the amount of coffee grounds going to landfill by 800,000 tonnes each year.

Reuse and recycle

It’s not just the actual coffee that causes waste. Every year, an estimated 2.5 billion throwaway coffee cups are used in the UK. The plastic film which coats the paper renders them unrecyclable. That’s approximately 25,000 tonnes of waste.

Founded by Safia Qureshi, Cup Club is a small start-up that’s testing reusable cups. And you won’t end up reusing the cup without washing it, or leaving it at the bottom of the wrong bag: the system is designed to let you drop off the cup at designated points, where it’ll be washed and returned to the cafe.

Other solutions include making consumers pay, along the lines of the plastic-bag tax, but the solution could be even easier. In his campaign to reduce the number of standard coffee cups we use, chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall highlighted that recyclable versions do exist. It’s just making sure cafes know consumers care about what happens to their cup after the cappuccino.

Recycling is now firmly on the capital’s agenda. North London Waste Authority puts on fun events to encourage people to reduce food waste, both at home and at work. It gives out free measuring tools for rice and spaghetti, Tupperware containers and recipe cards for leftovers.

We might not be there yet, but we’re making progress, one cup at a time. ww

Whether coffee-related or otherwise, at Workspace we’re committed to increasing the amount we recycle and helping our customers do the same.

Look out for a Recycling Road Show coming to your building soon. It’s your chance to tell us more about your recycling needs, ride an Urban Smoothie bike, play a waste sorting game and pick up free vouchers for tea and – you guessed it – coffee. In the meantime, for more information on recycling at Workspace email Karen Jamison at Karen.Jamison@ workspace.co.uk for a copy of our recently launched Recyclopedia booklet.

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the workspace advantage

We asked some of our customers what they see as The Workspace Advantage.

We got plenty of answers…

At Workspace we want the businesses that operate from our spaces to reach their full potential.

It has been our mission to develop inspiring spaces in the right locations, with platinum-standard digital infrastructure.

This year we launched an exciting Londonwide campaign to shine a light on ‘The Workspace Advantage’ – the key benefits which enable our customers to perform at their very best. You might have come across the campaign on the tube, online, in the papers or at our business centres.

The Workspace Advantage has three core pillars:

Wired Differently helps set us apart from the rest. As well as super-fast broadband and Wi-Fi, we aim to create spaces that inspire and promote energy to enable you to get the best out of your teams.

Super Connected means we ensure that each space has the digital capabilities to future-proof your business, and more than that, we offer communal and breakout areas that promote collaboration and create community.

No Limits is the final mission pillar.

We believe you should be given every opportunity to reach your true potential, so we don’t put limits on the type or flexibility of the space you need.

We wanted to celebrate your successes through some of the colourful and inspiring stories we’ve heard, showing how your businesses

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have developed in our flexible work spaces – which is why we asked our customers to feature in the campaign photography.

We’re grateful to all those who contributed to the success of our first-ever campaign and we’ve asked a few of them what The Workspace Advantage means to them.

Jamie Haselhurst JING Tea

For JING Tea, making a brew is not just preparing a hot drink – it’s an experience.

Based at Workspace’s Kennington Park Business Centre, the company believes in tea that is as delicious as it is uplifting to the spirit. Jamie, office assistant at JING, says she and her colleagues are happy with their working environment.

“People like it at Workspace, it’s relaxed,” says Jamie. “They really love the friendly people who run the environment.”

JING recently moved offices within Kennington Park to accommodate more employees, Jamie explains. “The next day things were up and running,” she says.

What’s more, interacting with other companies is always easy to do, she says.

Brian Wade Tim Flynn Architects

“Our office is our cocoon and sanctuary,” says Brian Wade of Tim Flynn Architects (TFA). “It feels like you’re working from home.”

TFA’s move to Metal Box Factory was prompted by an appetite for a more creative space and atmosphere.

“We wanted something different from the space we were in, something that was less ‘PwC’ and more creative,” he says.

“Previously we were in a big white bright space – not very creative. We started looking around the area and fell in love with Metal Box Factory,” Brian says. “It felt like a mini Google and ticked a lot of boxes. We really loved how interactive it felt. Under one umbrella are so many different companies.

People feel that energy. Plus, we need to wine and dine, and schmooze our clients, so it’s great that we’re in among a lot of dynamic different companies.”

Julia Janosa Jigsaw Interior Architecture

“It’s really easy when scheduling a meeting – your office or our office or in the breakout area?” Julia says. “It’s a complete coincidence but really convenient.” Bumping into other people from different industries is a natural process, thanks to the on-site cafe and the deli on the corner, she says. The Thursday evening bar on the terrace means you can have a drink and a chat after work, networking as you relax.

As for technology, the plug-and-play facilities in the meeting rooms are a definite step-up for Jigsaw.

“Tech is great compared to previous offices – sockets and plugs everywhere,” Julia says. ww Are you eager to be part of a buzzing community? Here at Workspace we pride ourselves on bringing people together. Our dynamic and stimulating workspaces provide the perfect networking opportunities and space for businesses to flourish.

Find out more about what Workspace can offer by visiting workspace.co.uk/advantage

homeworkmagazine

“ We really loved how interactive it feels.

Under one umbrella are so many different companies. People feel that energy�

Clockwise from top: Brian Wade, Julia Janosa,, Jamie Haselhurst

my workspace

emily bendell Bluebella Emily Bendell is the founder of Bluebella, a multi-award-winning lingerie brand based at The Light Box in Chiswick. On target for sales of £4.7 million this year, and fresh from a £1 million fundraiser on Crowdcube, the brand is stocked in ASOS and Topshop, and even collaborated with Fifty Shades Of Grey on a lingerie range. We asked Emily about what she likes to get up to at work, who her ideal buddy would be and what it’s like to have the longest commute in London.

Home is… where the heart is.

First thing you do when you get into work?

Get a coffee!

Office view you’d kill to have?

Top of the Shard would be nice.

Earliest London memory?

Going to London Zoo with my grandmother.

Best place to celebrate a deal?

Murano, because my friend is head chef there.

Favourite shops for work clothes?

Cos and & Other Stories.

Your go-to outfit?

An oversized dress and trainers.

First thing you do when you get back to London?

See my husband.

Worst work habit? Checking emails as they come in – it slows down productivity. I try to only check email three times a day but it’s hard.

If you were locked in the Light Box for the night, who would you choose as your buddy?

Can I choose anyone? Punk singer Patti Smith would have some great stories.

Best nook in The Light Box? Paul’s Café, of course.

Dream business partner?

Elon Musk.

What would you do as Mayor for the day?

Apply for London to join the EU. Favourite place to work out?

Blok, Clapton – I love it there.

Best place to let your hair down in Chiswick?

I live in Hackney so haven’t discovered the Chiswick nightlife as of yet.

Hackney, that’s pretty far from Chiswick.

How do you get into work every day?

It’s not as bad as it sounds, as it’s one Overground train all the way – but yes it’s a bit mad I’m the founder with such a long commute. Long story as to why!

Best secret London spot?

Uchi in Clapton – tucked away and very local but the best Japanese I’ve had in London.

“Top of the Shard would be nice” HomeWork, issue #4, Autumn/Winter 2017/2018, Editor/Features writer Farah Khalique, Art Director Dom Salmon, Writer Arthur House, Intern Camilla Allen, original photography Dom Salmon, Neil Massey, Sub-editors Vanessa Harriss, Anthony Teasdale, Publisher/Advertising Dan Reeves, dan@true212.com.

HomeWork is published by TRUE 212; true212.com. The magazine is printed by Alban House Print, 105 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3BU. At the time of print every effort was made to ensure the information contained in the magazine was correct.

Tony Woods, Design and Operations Director at Garden Club, Tom Harvey, Director at Spoke, Justin Rogers, Creative Director at Ten Health and Fitness, Donna Bamford, Co-founder at Sparks, James Allum, Chief Commercial Officer at freemarketFX, Lee Thompson and Radha Vyas, Co-founders at Flash Pack, John Warner, Founder and Director of Research & Development at SpinMe, Scot Warner, Head of Technical Research at SpinMe, Reza Merzaee and Ali Merzaee, Co-founders at Clic2Control, Nick Shute, Creative Director at Dodds & Shute, Liz Close, Founder and Managing Director at Generate, Mark Bembridge, CEO at Smartology, Zoe Watkins, Co-founder at Livewire Kitchen, Emily Bendell, Founder at Bluebella, Lucy Woodhouse and Meriel Kehoe, Co-founders at Claudi & Fin, Adam Tranter, Director at Fusion Media, Chris Stanley, Director at Anthesis, Darryl Mootoosamy, Head of Business Development at B Lab, Stefano Manganini, Business Development Manager at Forefront, Adam Parker, Associate Director at Greig and Stephenson, Leanne Spencer, Founder at Bodyshot Performance, Farah Qureshi, Contemporary Jeweller, Tom Dyer, Co-founder at European Bartending School, Jaime Dyer, School Manager at European Bartending School, Jamie Haselhurst, Office Assistant at JING Tea, Brian Wade, Associate and Interior Designer at Tim Flynn Architects, Julia Janosa, Interior Architectural Designer at Jigsaw Interior Architecture, Ian Tomalin-Hall, CEO at Grammatik, Burt and Gurt Jewellery Ltd, CM Delta, Output Group, Flourish, Socially Powerful, Pact Coffee, Ad Hoc Minds, DWR Offshore Ltd, Fab Staff, Auree Jewellery, Rococo Chocolates, Rigby & Mac, Volcano At Home, Lucy & Sam, Bulldog Skincare For Men, Shades of Colour, Igloo Regeneration, Impact Squared, I Can Make Shoes, DigitalMR

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a desk is…

… a table that works really hard. So we called ours, ‘Worktable’.

Rawside Furniture is a London-based, designer, builder and lover of the most practical office furniture on planet Earth. www.rawside.co ~ hello@rawside.co ~

@rawside

Rawside, The Undercroft, Kennington Park, 1-3 Brixton Road, London, SW9 6DE

“ Elon Musk is my dream business partner�

Emily Bendell, Bluebella