Last year, Moonpig delivered nearly 49 million personalised gifts, cards and bouquets last year alone. They are dedicated to helping their customers celebrate the moments that matter – from milestone birthdays and anniversaries to new arrivals and all those special 'just because' occasions.

The company operated from their old space at WeWork in Spinningfields since 2018 and the time had come for a change. Richard Pearson, Head of Engineering at Moonpig, got in touch with LEVEL to help find the perfect workspace for the business.

He said: “I found LEVEL after seeing a case study on LinkedIn for another business you helped find a workspace for recently and I reached out because I was impressed by that.

“I initially spoke to Joe, who was amazing and really helpful from the get-go.”

Aligning workspace with staff needs

Like any business, Moonpig’s success relies on the wellbeing and happiness of its staff. Making sure employees had the best possible working environment was therefore the number one motivation behind a potential move.

Moonpig wanted to align their new office space with the needs of their employees, as well as finding the long-term stability that a business of their stature and size needs to grow.

To make sure their needs were met, staff were asked to complete a survey and rank 10 features of an office by preference. They wanted to find out what were ‘must haves’, what were ‘nice to haves’ and what people didn’t really care about.

The feedback informed the office search from day one. Moonpig had previously experienced issues with space limitations and a lack of meeting rooms in their previous office, so it was no surprise that staff had prioritised more space, dedicated meeting rooms and breakout areas.

A lack of space was hindering staff collaboration in the office and making it hard to operate effectively with colleagues who were working remotely. Finding a space with the facilities which allowed the team to work together flexibly no matter where they were based on a particular day was essential.

Moonpig’s staff also identified a range of ‘nice to haves’ that would further improve their working environment. These included:

‍

·      Quiet workspaces for solo working

·      An event space

·      Lockers

·      Bag storage

·      Changing rooms

·      Showers

·      Private spaces for prayer

‍

Furthermore, Moonpig had some other requirements that helped the LEVEL team narrow down the search, including:

‍

·      Space that could accommodate 25 guests

·      Proximity to public transport so that people could get there easily

·      Kitchen facilities

·      Easy visitor access to make the space as convenient and comfortable for guests as possible

‍

Proceeding on a quick timeline

Moonpig needed to move on a relatively quick timeline and appointed LEVEL to begin the search process once everyone within the business was aligned.

Following initial contact with Joe Averill, founder and Managing Director of LEVEL, a range of options were presented which corresponded with Moonpig staff’s commuting patterns. They didn’t want a space that would disadvantage their staff and dissuade people from coming into the office.

With that in mind, the shortlist was narrowed down to three properties between Piccadilly and Victoria stations. Once viewings had taken place at all three, the winner was selected by Richard Pearson and the Moonpig leadership team.

Richard said: “My colleague Rob and I, along with Robert van Kooten, went on to visit the shortlisted locations. We also surveyed staff to understand how they typically got to work. We were keen to avoid choosing a space that would disadvantage many staff members or discourage them from coming into the office.

“There was quite a big split in commuting patterns, so we narrowed it down to three properties. One near Piccadilly, one near Victoria, and one in the middle.

“Interestingly, our choice was more by chance than design. Rob and I joked about our preferences, he preferred Piccadilly, and I preferred Victoria. But when we visited the spaces, we both agreed that the one near Victoria was the best option.”

Merging two offices to create a unique space for Moonpig

The selected workspace at 1 Balloon Street near Victoria Station offered Moonpig a unique opportunity. Following discussions with the flexible workspace operator, Orega, they merged two offices into one larger space that is unlike any other flexible office to rent in Manchester.

The office is set up for 40 desks, but Moonpig only commissioned 25 desks initially based on their hybrid working model. The remaining space will be used for meeting pods, soft furnishings, and other features to create a really functional and comfortable space for staff.

Crucially, it meets the needs of the business while also matching the needs of the staff. Aligning business goals with a new workspace is a fantastic way to inspire growth and is one of the key ways that large, high-growth businesses like Moonpig can entice, rather than drag, employees back into the office.

Richard said: “We definitely wouldn't have been able to find many of these spaces without LEVEL. While we did some of our own research to explore options, LEVEL brought us a much broader range to consider, many more than we would have found on our own.

“What really stood out was Joe's deep knowledge of the Manchester property market. He knew exactly where people were taking space, who owned what, and could offer trusted, expert guidance.

“With his help, we were able to explore options we wouldn’t have known about otherwise, including some hidden gems.”

Prioritising employees successfully

The space at 1 Balloon Street met the needs of Moonpig’s employees perfectly. It offers an upgraded working environment that enables simple, effective communication between all employees – whether they are in the office or not.

While Moonpig are determined to provide a world-class office environment for their staff, their working policy is flexible with no strict requirements for mandatory office attendance.

Individuals at the company make their own decisions, and the new office is designed to support that so nobody feels penalised and productivity remains high.

Richard said: “The new space meets the needs of the company by offering a better working environment that truly supports engagement. From Moonpig's perspective, we want to show our Manchester staff that we care about providing a space where they actually want to work.

“Instead of forcing people to come in on specific days, our goal is to provide a space that they enjoy using, so they want to come in and interact with others.

“This is something we didn’t have in our previous office where the environment didn’t encourage the same level of engagement. By creating this new space, we’re building a work environment that people want to use, which helps with collaboration and team spirit.”

A smooth deal and beneficial negotiation process

The deal proceeded smoothly and the negotiation delivered a range of benefits for Moonpig. We were able to utilise our strong relationship with Orega to agree two major wins for the client that wouldn’t have been attainable for anyone else.

First, we managed to hold the space for company for a long period of time while Moonpig agreed everything internally. This is not something that landlords are normally keen to do, but by leveraging our strong relationship and Moonpig’s brand, we managed to secure this hold and give everyone in the business the time they needed to make the decision.

Second, we negotiated on rent for the initial 12-month term and agreed a total saving of £18,324 for Moonpig.

Joe Averill, Managing Director at LEVEL Workspace, said: “Working with Moonpig has been a pleasure from day one. They knew what they wanted and prioritised finding a place which met the needs of the business and staff equally.

“They provided a textbook example of how to align company growth plans with the needs of their employees to secure an outstanding new workspace. It’s how it should be done, and it was fantastic to be able to help Richard deliver on that thorough, collaborative approach.

“Their new office at 1 Balloon Street is unlike anything else in Manchester and provides the facilities, space and stability that Moonpig needed. Being able to negotiate such significant additional benefits like the rent reduction and long holding period on their behalf was the icing on the cake of an outstanding deal.”

Want to find a new office to rent in Manchester that can help your company thrive like Moonpig? Get in touch with Joe and the LEVELWorkspace team today to start the search and take the next step in your company’s growth.  

‍