A business centre which has supported the creation of more than 200 jobs by start-ups and expanding small firms during the last five years is preparing for further growth by existing tenants and prospective new arrivals.
Two architects who built their businesses after starting from scratch at The Deep Business Centre have now doubled their space in the building to 500 square feet. Another tenant is in discussions about expanding to accommodate new recruitment, and management of the centre are also advising a business which is exploring options to relocate its 15 Hull staff after outgrowing its current premises.
Freya Cross, Business and Corporate Events Manager at The Deep, said: “We are experiencing a rush of activity and enquiries from businesses here that want to expand and from new contacts who have seen the benefits and flexibility that we can offer.
“Some of our tenants open with only one or two people and never get any bigger. At the other end of the scale we have Vizion Network, which began with one person and now employs more than 100 here and nearly 50 at a second office in Wellingborough.
“Most of them start with one or two people and expand gradually, building the business with our support, recruiting more staff and taking more space.”
BSB Architecture was launched at The Deep in 2011 when Roger Hallett and John Hunter decide to set up their own firm. Since then they have expanded to create a team of five, with further recruitment likely.
Roger said: “We’ve been winning more work and because of that we’ve needed more hands at the pump, which now means we need a bigger office to accommodate everybody.
“It’s the culmination of what we have been doing over the last few years, building a good reputation which helps us to attract repeat business. We also get business from being at The Deep – we have completed projects for other tenants and for The Deep itself, including the communal lounge area which opened in 2015.”
Leeds-based thisismy, which has been providing foetal ultrasound scanning, genetic screening, 4D baby scans and diagnostic ultrasound services since 2003, opened its Hull centre at The Deep in 2009 and recently doubled its accommodation to 500 square feet.
Judith Pilling, Managing Director of the company, said: “We started with one person in Hull and now we have four clinical staff and three admin people and we’ve doubled the space to include a dedicated patient waiting room and two scan rooms.
“We are expanding our services and looking to make people more aware of our expertise not only in general obstetric scanning and 4D baby imaging but also Non-invasive Prenatal Testing screening for chromosomal abnormalities.”
Freya, who is a member of the national board of the Business Centre Association added: “BSB Architecture and thisismy illustrate the variety of sectors in which our tenants operate. We see our role as taking care of the day-to-day tasks so they can focus on building the business, and that’s particularly important when it comes to eliminating any disruption and downtime that can arise from moving offices.”
