The cost of office space in the UK is now so high one in four workers are being forced to escape crowded offices in favour of coffee shops, it has been claimed.
According to research by BT, office space now costs as much as £1,700 per square metre. London is the most expensive place to rent or buy – prices have increased by nearly 30% in the last year.
The research found that 26% of employees work in a coffee shop at least once a week. A lack of office space was cited by 18% of respondents as the main reason for this.
Chris Bruce, general manager, BT Openzone, said: “As costs for space increase, there’s a clear trend for business people to leave cramped offices to hunt out a quiet coffee shop corner to work and hold meetings.
Jonathan Hart, managing director of Cafè Nero, said the research had confirmed what he and his staff were seeing more frequently – that office workers were increasingly turning to cafés to work in.
Nearly half of respondents said they had worked in a coffee shop while travelling and 44% said a café offered a more informal setting for a business meeting.
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