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Fairfi eld’s shop front design for Wye residential
Part One
O
Grand designs
Lawrence Higgins asks the UK’s leading shopfi tters to explain how an offi ce facelift can boost your business.
ver the next three issues of The Negotiator, specialist agency designers will demonstrate what can be achieved with diff erent
budgets ranging from tight to extravagant, which products are available, examine how to achieve your ambitions and fi nd out how to make the most of your design. The last few years have seen untold
numbers of estate agencies merge, be taken over by larger and national chains, make a break away from the parent company in a bid for independence, expand, rebrand, launch and relaunch. Whichever the scenario, in the initial instance any agent undergoing such changes will be judged by the face it portrays to the public – their shop window and the branch interior: regardless of the march of on-line marketing, potential clients will still
get their fi rst impression of an agent by its shop front and its visual accessibility. Janice Fairfi eld, Managing Director at Fairfi eld Designs, says, “A redesign or fi t-out will completely change the way potential customers view the business.” Starting up and establishing a new offi ce or
refurbishing an existing branch is a daunting prospect – the planning, disruption, the cost – but there are many professionals out there that can smooth the process. Jonathan Edwards, Director at Excite, says,
“A quality refurbishment not only creates great working environments attractive to the target client market, but are an investment in the future, saving money in the longer term by reduced maintenance costs. Serious attention needs to be paid to the visual impact and usability of the space but to the offi ce
“A redesign or fi t-out will completely change the way potential customers view the business.” Janice Fairfi eld Fairfi eld Designs,
www.thenegotiator.co.uk
infrastructure to ensure it is adaptable to account for the future of the business.” It may also be diffi cult to take the plunge
– do you really need to lay out the cash and disrupt work. But ultimately it may be that you cannot aff ord not to invest – it is not only about how your business is viewed externally, but it aff ects the very nature of what you do and those who do it for you. David Stevens, partner at me&c associates
says, “A redesign can lift the entire business. It’s not only about your clients, it’s about your staff feeling great when they walk through the door each morning and representing your business. A well-designed offi ce enables you to take ownership of the space and for it to attract new business. Too much is put off for next year and particularly in the agency market we fi nd sorry looking offi ces that don’t attract potential clients. We are currently partnering with Chesterton Humberts on a refurbishment programme and the fi rst two sites have generated a real buzz.” Whilst Janice sums up, “Branding is far
more important than many agents realise, it is TheNegotiator ● August 2012 ● 21
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