London Commercial Property Retail Sales Soar for Office Furniture

Posted on 13 April, 2012 by MOVEHUT

Is working from home becoming the norm, as more and more people end their daily commute by simply crawling out of bed and turning on the computer? Or are people simply preparing for the winter months, when the car has no intention of going anywhere, stuck in six inches of snow? Or could it be something else?

With the London Olympic Games fast approaching, many people are increasingly buying office furniture to get ready for home working to avoid the mad chaotic rush – made even worse by thousands of tourists trying to get their bearings.

Retail commercial property John Lewis has reported an increase in office furniture of 14 per cent, when compared to the same time last year. The sales include desks, chairs, computer equipment and desk tidies, just to name a few.

Although the increase has been felt all over the UK, the demand has been significantly greater in and around the London area. Speaking of the sales, Sally Hudson, spokeswomen for John Lewis, said: “We’ve seen more and more of our customers getting their homes ready for home-working – either for the Olympics, or longer term.

“Despite the advent of laptop computers and Wi-Fi, most of us still require a designated work station in order to work from home productively.”

So who works from a home office?

Last month it was reported that 2.43 million people now run a business from home, and the number of workers registered as self employed has increased by 28 per cent in the last decade. Speaking of the figures, Jim Plunkett-Cole, Principal Analyst from Smart Growth Analytics, stated: “The findings demonstrate the economic importance of home offices in regional economies across the country.

“They begin to help us understand the increasingly important home-based economic functionality of the more rural and residential areas outside of London.”


In addition, research also revealed that two-thirds of people who work from a home office are men, as Tim Dwelly, Director of the Workhubs, said: “More and more men are choosing to be their own bosses, based in their own environment, in preference to commuting and working on someone else’s terms.”

Do you work from a home office, or do you prefer working from the more traditional commercial property?




Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.


Recent Posts

Interest Rates Impact on Commercial Property

Commercial Property Investment Outlook for 2023

The best places to stay on the Riviera

The latest property data has identified Newquay as the fastest property seller’s market in the UK

Investing in your garden can increase your property’s value

French Riviera temping high-end homebuyers

How can the ownership rights of my commercial property impact a business sale?

Should I incorporate virtual property viewings permanently?

Investment expected to increase across Asia-Pacific in 2021

UK property industry slows as the conclusion of tax break looms

BNP Paribas cautioned investors on Friday as debt-trading bonanza that increased its earnings this past year

Over 300,000 property purchases fell through in 2020 – we show the most frequent motives and the best way to get your house sale back on track

House Prices in the Capital Surpass £500,000

Optimism from the Bank of England’s chief economist

The most expensive commercial properties.

Businesses operating from shared premises will miss out on grants