focus on bracknell .... continued


Fryer has been running his commercial property practice in Bracknell since 2008 and regularly talks to local and potential incoming companies. Bracknell has plenty of varied stock available, at rents considerably lower than neighbouring areas, both he and Hannah Durden confirmed.


Affordable housing and offices – diverse occupancy, tenant value-for-money – with access to green amenity space and Bracknell Forest, were key attractions said Durden.


Ease of travel also rated high on Fryer and Durden’s lists of Bracknell bonuses.


“The best Thames Valley connections to the M3 and M4 – a few minutes in each case – is certainly key. There’s little or no traffic congestion, it’s a pleasure to drive about at any time of day. Personally, I would rather work in Bracknell than any of its neighbours, and I worked in Reading for 30 years,” said Fryer.


Travel accessibility enabled Hothi’s company to tap into the wider surrounding talent pool of areas in the knowledge that any staff could commute easily to Bracknell. “It also gives us access to nearby Reading University graduates which is important to our business ethos.”


“Bracknell is a very practical place, easy to get in and out of, plus it definitely has USPs that others don’t,” said Russian. He exampled the new compact walkable core to the town as a big plus,” but added that Bracknell’s overall quality of life was the main attraction.


James Finnis summed up the business attractions as “an excellent and diverse occupier base with many international and national corporates, proximity of transportation links coupled to the highly skilled demographic.”


Exampling the recent relocation of HiFX Honda UK


from Windsor to Maxis Bracknell, Finnis said: “As a location, the town gives employees what they need, and at a cost-effective occupational price that gives businesses what they want, Caffe Kix, which is located onsite at Maxis, provides an area to host informal meetings and provides a place for employees to ‘get away’ from their desks and as such is proving an attractive proposition for occupiers.”


And, is such attractiveness sustainable?


Bracknell Forest’s Nicholls had no doubts: “While not a threat, more of an opportunity, managing the growth of the Borough and all that entails will be key to the town’s continued success.


“We have a robust growth strategy in place to provide the jobs, learning opportunities, homes and places for our residents to flourish.”


Russian believes businesses and residents will be attracted by the town’s new retail and leisure offering – the missing piece of Bracknell’s lifestyle jigsaw. “We’ve been


getting pretty much a ringing endorsement on what we have shown people so far.”


Others wholeheartedly supported Nicholls, while noting potential concerns.


Finnis: “Currently Bracknell office space is trading at a financial discount to other local towns – this economic advantage will help precipitate further activity – but we are forecasting growth in this location as demand outstrips the relatively limited supply of Grade A space.”


Hothi added: “It is vitally important to retain bigger businesses such as HP and Honda; Bracknell has become a partial hub for Japanese businesses. If the area can encourage other large companies from other countries, we might see a flurry or domino effect of companies coming into Bracknell.”


Then, there was the challenge of change itself. Bracknell was built as a satellite New Town moving people out from London in the 1950s, noted Prosser, and although the old and new organic growth currently sits well together “change does scare some folk – so there could be a culture-change ‘push and pull’ between the old and young.”


And competition? “We are not trying to compete with other towns like Reading because what Bracknell can offer will be a different experience,” stated Russian.


Prosser agreed: “You are not comparing like with like” and “In a post credit-crunch era, consumers like choice.”


Bracknell’s great travel location is however a two-edged sword, providing “easy access to Reading, Wokingham and Camberley and the various business and technology hubs in between,” as Prosser noted.


Cheung: “There will be a number of people who commute further out and compare their home town to what Bracknell offers, but the regeneration and new developments will determine the future of whether Bracknell changes its reputation.”


Continued overleaf ... 18 businessmag.co.uk THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – SEPTEMBER 2016 Maxis


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