Frankfurt am Main has long been experiencing drastic rises in the prices of residential and commercial premises. With Brexit and the migration of international banks to the Main metropolis, the situation regarding Frankfurt’s office market has become even more acute. Self-employed people, freelancers and small business owners in particular now find themselves in a bind: they can afford neither to do without Frankfurt as a business hub nor to pay for office space there. However, flexible rental offices and virtual offices offer genuine alternatives – perhaps for you too?
Economic powerhouse and home of Goethe: that’s Frankfurt am Main
With a population of just under a million, Frankfurt should, in theory, struggle to compete with Germany’s larger cities. Nevertheless, this ‘little spot on the Main’ has held its own among the most important urban centres in the German-speaking world since the Middle Ages. It was here that the young Goethe strolled through the Palmengarten, and in 1948 the first National Assembly, meeting in Frankfurt’s Paulskirche, resolved to establish the first German Reich.
Even today, just outside the gates of the Frankfurt Chamber of Industry and Commerce, you can still see the statues of the old stock exchange building, which impressively represent the economic markets with which Frankfurt had already established lively trade links by the mid-19th century: every continent is represented there. It was here that Ludwig Erhard decided on the currency reform that marked the beginning of the modern German market economy. Today, Frankfurt is a fascinating blend of old and new. Deconstructivist skyscrapers share the limited space with classical residential buildings, whilst romantic parks wind their way around university laboratories. And at the heart of it all lies a distinctive office landscape in Frankfurt, the metropolis on the Main.
Germany’s number one business hub
Over 100,000 businesses were registered in Frankfurt am Main in 2017. As the most important transport hub in Germany and Europe, the city attracts companies from all sectors; the city’s logistics firms alone form their own small ‘airport district’; Lufthansa built its Airbus 380 here. In ‘Mainhatten’, stretching along the Frankfurt skyline, all the major German banks are represented, and since Brexit, experts have predicted that numerous international counterparts will join them. Google operates one of the major server hubs in the city that keep the search engine running. The Frankfurt Book Fair is just one of Frankfurt’s many world-renowned trade fairs.
But the appeal of Germany’s number one business location comes at a price. Residential and rental accommodation is extremely scarce in Frankfurt. After all, it is not just commercial premises that need to be provided; companies also bring with them a veritable flood of employees and their families, who in turn need somewhere to live and work. Despite the city’s efforts to construct new buildings at breakneck speed, property prices have risen alarmingly in recent years. Rents are almost 100 per cent above the German average; the price increase in Frankfurt’s Old Town since 2017 stands at a staggering 171 per cent.
The bitter sacrifice of the location advantage
Perhaps you, too, are now facing the following problem: you simply cannot afford commercial property in Frankfurt’s exclusive office district. Investments on this scale would be absurd, especially as these are ongoing costs. Yet, on the other hand, you cannot afford to stay away from this location. A vast number of potential customers congregate here. Anyone who isn’t represented by at least a permanent branch office will arrange convenient appointments in Frankfurt whilst passing through and is certainly not prepared to take a taxi to an overly remote suburb for that purpose. Or perhaps you belong to an industry in which a Frankfurt business address has a significant impact on your prestige. Particularly in the finance and insurance sectors, a presence in the vicinity of the ‘Bull and Bear’ – the emblem of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange – is, in principle, essential. Further location advantages of Frankfurt include the excellent infrastructure and direct access to funding and institutions such as the chambers of commerce, which are considerably better established in the city than in rural areas. So what should you do?
Alternative: Flexible office models
The solution to this problem may lie in the alternative of flexible office models. The concept is simple: let go of the idea that your business must be inextricably linked to a fixed office space at a fixed location, or even staffed by your own employees. Instead, consider virtual offices. Consider rented office services. Consider fully equipped office and meeting rooms.
The COLLECTION Business Centre in the Nextower
Are you familiar with Frankfurt’s Nextower, one of the city’s leading office buildings? It forms part of the so-called Palaisquartier in the heart of the city centre — on the edge of the Zeil — three hundred metres as the crow flies from the Hauptwache S-Bahn station. At 136 metres tall, with its angular aluminium façades, it immediately catches the eye. There, on the 29th floor, almost under the roof, lies the COLLECTION Business Centre with its light-filled offices, conference and meeting rooms.
Instead of having your own permanent office, you can book a desk here on a flexible basis. You’ll then have access to prestigious premises on a cost-effective basis whenever you need them – without having to do without a Frankfurt business address. Your office services can also be handled there, ensuring you remain reachable by telephone at all times without needing to be physically present in a permanent office. This means that property prices are no longer an issue, even in Frankfurt. Find out more: COLLECTION Business Centre Frankfurt. We look forward to hearing from you!
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