Quarter of UK business to close or scale down offices post-pandemic

Over a quarter of UK companies say they plan to close, downsize or consolidate their offices going forward, as they move to a flexible mix of remote and in-office working.

Such a change has profound implications for many businesses, not least the experiential advertising sector, which had seen booming growth for over a decade leading up to 2020 – then the pandemic struck.

The details

• After a year of experiencing the work-from-home model, more than half, or 53%, of businesses say they plan to offer more flexible or remote working policies, according to research from research company YouGov carried out for HR tech firm Applaud. 
• 30% of businesses say they are expecting employees to come into the office only between one and three days a week. 14% say they don’t expect staff to return to the office at all after the pandemic.

What it means for advertising

• Meanwhile, advertisers in the UK and US are gaining in confidence as vaccine rollouts gather pace and an end to the toughest restrictions are now within sight – agencies report pent-up demand from advertisers to return to pre-2020 levels.
• Experiential activity is likely to see a shift, and focus less on central locations. According to UK agency Appear Here, which helps brands use vacant storefronts, sometimes for as short a time as a day, the focus now is on local ‘neighbourhood’ activations, with brands increasingly renting storefronts next to places where people work, eat and seek entertainment. 
• Savvy brands are active in neighborhood spaces to connect with local communities. Demand for stores in ‘cool neighborhoods’ versus city centre high streets has gone up by 56% compared to pre-Covid, it says

Key quote

“People want to congregate outside in parks and restaurants. That’s an experience where brands are looking to see how they can help and play a role in even those in-between spaces. It’s really a pretty broad spectrum in terms of how brands are looking to come back” – Gaston Tourn, Appear Here chief marketing officer.

Sourced from CityAM