Generator vs. Sublease

As a Commercial Real Estate Agent, you may have clients coming to you unsure if a flexible workspace is the right option for them and considering taking a short-term sublease or as a manager or owner, you might be thinking a sublease is a good move for your business right now.

We are confident that Generator is a far better option than a sublease for most businesses. Take a look why…

Flexible arrangements – How can it work?

We are seeing more businesses looking at innovative ways to manage their teams and support flexible ways of working.
For example, companies come to us with 50 staff but because of rostered arrangements only plan to have 20 in the office at a time. If, on the off chance more than 20 people come in or they want to have an all staff meeting – we have plenty of facilities to support those requirements. In addition, we can offer a portal for booking desks within their offices to assist in managing traffic. We can work with your clients to provide tailor made or existing solutions that suit the way they work and what they are trying to achieve.

With a sublease, the ability to tailor an arrangement that is designed to meet business outcomes is limited.

Expansion or retraction

Team growing or reducing? We work with our members if they have expansion or retraction requirements, it’s our priority to support their business needs – and a key KPI for us to keep them in the portfolio. We will develop solutions that meet their changing needs in this rapidly changing world.

With a sublease, the space is the space.

Term

Generally, we operate on a 12-month term for our private offices and resident desks. But 2020 has been one for the books and we understand that 12-months can feel like an eternity right now. So, we can be flexible on term if required and have developed low risk ‘space booking’ options for shorter term requirements. We understand that many subleases are offering month-on-month.

If term is a deal-breaker for your client, chat to us as we can work together to develop a solution.

Culture

This one is a bit more intangible right? If you’re going into a sublease or taking desks in another business’s office, it can be a bit like moving in with flatmates and often your client is at the mercy of the business they are sharing with.

Do they share similar values around noise, music, kitchen cleanliness, Friday drinks?

At Generator, we’ve been successfully building culture and engaging communities with our members for almost ten years. All businesses are on an equal standing and we take care of the niggly kitchen cleaning and admin as well as the social stuff with our calendar of events.

Not only that, but your clients will benefit from exposure to other like-minded businesses and expanding networks.

IT and Amenity

This is a biggy and where Generator seriously cannot be beat.

Our IT systems are best in class and we have an inhouse team that will support you every step of the way. IT Infrastructure and user experience is taken care of by our IT team - meaning less downtime, less cost and more expertise - If it's good enough for global enterprise clients like Google, AWS, AMEX and Salesforce...

We have meeting rooms and event spaces up the wazoo and a concierge team for whom no task is too big or too small.

With a sublease or shared office arrangement there are going to be a heap of niggles – how will meeting room usage work? Who’s in charge of the internet? The printer is on the blink… The list could go on.

At Generator it’s our job to take care of those things, so your client can get on with the business of their business.

Professional frontage and location

In a shared arrangement, often the sub-lessee is tied into any existing signage or branding of the original party.

At Generator, we are brand neutral by design. Our lounges and meeting rooms will make all guests feel welcome.

We also have offices in some of Auckland's best locations - Britomart and Wynard Quarter – awesome for any business wanting to showcase themselves in the best possible light.

Hygiene and Covid response

The team at Generator handles everything, from clear communication through to regular sanitation, you can rely on us to safely manage your workspace and covid response. We’ve even prepared a detailed handbook outlining our response.

In a sublease, this is something your client will have to consider in the new Covid world.

Stability

Owned by Precinct Properties, Generator isn’t going anywhere (well, we are expanding to Wellington…) We are a solid bet that can provide your clients confidence. Is the business your client looking to bunk in with going to be around in 12-months’ time?

Price

So, a sublease might look super cost effective but once you take all the benefits of Generator into account, we generally come out on top.

This article was prepared for the Commercial Real Estate Agents we work with – but its relevant to any business weighing up the pros and cons of sublease.