Business
6 Options If You Can't Afford An Office For Your StartUp
Once an entrepreneur has decided to take the big plunge and invest in a big start-up idea one of the biggest challenges, besides finding the right team and investment, is, of course, finding the perfect office for the little dream team. Amidst figuring out all the funding/investment problems, getting the big swanky office space that your start-up deserves might take a backseat. If you cannot yet afford the office of your dreams in the prime location that you want here are alternatives you can look to, in the interim, to create a conducive work space-
1. Shared Office Spaces – CoWorking
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Several offices put out ads to sublet their floor space as well as office furniture, complete with computer systems. A shared office space where two or three start-ups can work side by side does not only help in cost cutting. The businesses can learn a lot from each other. New entrepreneurs can log into various start-up forums and Facebook pages and put the word out that they are looking for a shared workspace in the city. This move is both reasonable on the purse and good for the team.
2. Home Offices
Sanjeev Bikhchandani Founder Naukri.com Started from Home Office : Watch
Turning the home into an office space is not a new idea for devoted entrepreneurs. But there are various cost effective ways one can make the idea more profitable. Instead of buying office furniture from the market entrepreneurs can opt for buying second-hand office furniture from the internet. Platforms such as Quickr and Olx are crawling with former offices that are aiming to sell their office goods, complete with conference tables and projectors, at cheap rates. Most of these goods are in fine condition and can prove to be a profitable bargain. Additionally, turning the house into an office space has certain advantages, besides saving money on rent. Employees have the comfort of taking quick breaks and marathon work hour sessions are a much more comfortable possibility.
3. Work Cafes
There are cafes in the city that allow freelancers and entrepreneurs to avail their wifi and work long hours in exchange for a set fee. Almost every metropolitan city has these cafes. A start-up owner can take his team to one of these cafes and work can commence without much ado. It is not a long term solution surely, but if the entrepreneur has a team on board and would rather not waste time between work and finding an office then work cafes is a very good idea.
4. Basement/Storage/Other
Of course, basements have become synonymous with start-ups in many places and rightfully so. A start-up is just that just starting up- and to rent a huge office space is to invest in the wrong direction, prematurely. Spaces such as basements, storages, former parking lots, even former garage units can be transformed into beautiful and incredibly fun workspaces with a reasonable investment. What one needs is ingenuity and a good idea of office interior design. The right paint on the walls, good furniture, wall decorations can easily do the trick. Game spaces such as a pool table and resting areas with a futon can be installed to spice up the décor and provide additional facilities to the workers. What one needs is creativity, and the most mundane and unlikely space can become a very conducive space for hard work.
5. Work From Home
Not the ideal option but might not be that impractical when it comes to start-ups. Once an entrepreneur has a good team in his/her hands, it is an error to put off work simply because an office has not become a reality yet. Today, technology guarantees us various facilities to live chat, video chat, share screens and co-ordinate work quite efficiently. Unless the work needs physical cooperation, work from home is also a reasonable option until a workspace can be figured out.
6. Rent per Hour Offices – CoWorking
So if an entrepreneur chooses to make his team work from home while he figures out a cost effective means to get their office space, where does he brief or pitch his proposals to his prospective clients? There are several places that sublet their conference rooms, projectors, and other office amenities to small businesses at an hourly or daily basis. You can book a hall for a day and hold your weekly or monthly meeting with your team members or prospective clients. It is a win/win situation at a very reasonable bargain.
