Stephen Deller, Centre Manager at Ocean Village Innovation Centre, Southampton, which provides serviced offices and business support. The centre is operated by UKSPA member Oxford Innovation Space on behalf of the building’s private owner.
A serviced offices and business support provider in Southampton has seen a surge in post-pandemic occupancy signings.
Ocean Village Innovation Centre (OVIC), which is operated by UKSPA member Oxford Innovation Space on behalf of the private owner of the 30,000 sq ft building, has 67 offices.
Centre Manager Stephen Deller said: “It has been an incredibly busy year to date, with 16 new agreements in place.
“As well as various on-site expansions from existing customers, companies have chosen OVIC as their local or regional base, preferring the flexibility of easy-in, easy-out licence agreements over traditional five or 10-year office leases elsewhere.
“Signings include BPS World, Worldwide Cruises, Timeplan, Impellam Group, Reflect Group, Fortus Midlands, Kitsune, Harvey Jacob, Snowflake Care, Barrick and Tredon Group.
“The post-pandemic surge means OVIC, which marks its 12th anniversary in December, only has 15% left by way of offices and shared co-working space.”
Stephen added: “Whilst there is undoubtedly an element of hybrid working behind the increased occupancy, with some employers across the region requiring less floorspace as staff split their work time between offices and remote working, we hear that the provision of in-house business support is a key factor.
“According to industry reports, around 60% of small businesses in the UK fail within the first 36 months, underscoring the importance of expert guidance here on site.
“Daniel Belton is OVIC’s in-house Innovation Director, bringing a wealth of experience and knowledge to help companies, large or small, grow.
“We have a number of occupiers which have transformed their businesses thanks to input from OVIC’s team over the past few years.
“As part of the support network, we are also providing even more workshops for occupiers, including Growth Hub Workshops, which focus on grant applications to marketing, sales training and pizza-and-drinks networking events.
“What we are seeing here at OVIC is a thriving community of entrepreneurs moving on from the Covid-19 era and looking to the future with confidence and zeal.”
