Premium Office Space in SE1 Turns Area into Emerging Media Cluster
As more companies look for alternatives to Soho, premium office space in SE1 is helping to shape the area into an emerging media cluster.
Businesses looking for serviced office space in SE1 including areas such as Waterloo and London Bridge during the first few months of 2014 could expect to pay between £275 and £600 per workstation per month. The broad range reflects the fact that the area is still home to a broad mix of entry level space alongside the premium space which is starting to appear.
The launch of new premium serviced office space in SE1 reflects the shift of London’s creative and media industries away from Soho.
Competition for space, combined with restrictions on construction (the result of several conservation areas) have long ensured that key West End areas such as Soho have been home to some of the most expensive office space in the capital. The introduction of relaxed office-to-residential conversion rules last year placed a further squeeze on space.
In the face of further price increases and even tougher competition for space, media and creative agencies are looking south of the river to areas such as Waterloo and London Bridge to find a more affordable office solution.
Serviced office providers have been quick to address the demand by creating new premium business centres in these locations. As a result, SE1 is rapidly emerging as a new media cluster for London.
Media businesses taking office space in SE1 are positioning themselves along high-profile companies including News International, which took the decision to relocate to the Baby Shard in 2013, and Al Jazeera, which is one of the few companies to be based in The Shard itself.
Indeed, The Shard may remain mostly empty in terms of office tenants, but it has nonetheless made a significant contribution towards putting SE1 on the map as a business destination.
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