Harmsen’s involvement with the British Council for Offices takes us to all sorts of events, seminars and conferences.

Whenever we talk to our colleagues in the property world about how the industry could adjust and innovate for the future, it’s usually the landlord who gets the panning. Regular complaints include “They don’t think outside the box”; or “Leases are too long and lack flexibility;” and (this is the one that really annoys the landlord community) “They’re out of touch with their customers”. Well, in our role as a client-lead design team, here’s our bid to defend one landlord at least.

Scottish Widows, advised by JLL, have drawn up an interesting tenant-retention scheme for their Abbots House building in Reading. Abbots House, which totals about 120,000 sq ft, has two tenants: our clients Boyes Turner, Thames Valley’s leading commercial law firm; and an international accountancy and management consultancy firm. The building’s 1980s design and infrastructure are tired and obsolete.

In anticipation of lease expiries, Scottish Widows have devised a decant-and-refurb strategy that works well for both of its tenants and goes like this:
1. Boyes Turner’s co-tenant camps out in a nearby business park for a year.
2. Meantime, Boyes Turner stays put in its existing floors in Abbots House while the landlord’s contractor upgrades the base build, enlarges the ground floor and introduces an impressive atrium stair.
3. The Harmsen team design the top two floors of Abbots House, ready for fit-out.
4. The top two floors are completed for Boyes Turner to move into.
5. The landlord team works down the building to complete the remaining floors.
6. Boyes Turner’s co-tenant moves back in.

Harmsen’s design team have now completed the scheme and are consulting with fit-out contractors. Watch this space for further developments. For now though, here’s to the innovative landlord – and, a note to our colleagues in the office industry – give them a break!