A Tale of Two Offices: Meeting the Covid-19 Challenge And Winning

My business has been impacted by the pandemic. 

My working environment has been changed, re-arranged in ways I could not have foreseen. It has affected my company bank balance; my relations with suppliers, and above all the view my clients take of me. 

But, here’s the thing, all of the above has been impacted in a positive way. 

Yes, that’s right: positive. Let me explain. 

Many of you know that St Matthew, our City firm of accountants and the US-facing consultancy, Mount Bonnell Advisors, were based in one of the ancient byways of the City of London: Old Jewry. We had been in these offices since 2012. For those years all had been as you would expect, namely, a nice location, a pleasant work environment for my staff, and a civilized place for my clients to come for meetings. And all was just within a few meters walk of some of the best bars and restaurants known in the City. All round not bad! 

Covid-19 changed all that. The large office building we were part of emptied as people were quarantined at home as for the months of March and April 2020 the City turned into a ghost town.

We don't know if it was because of the Covid-19, but our landlords got into difficulties and went into administration. The deposits of many tenants, including ours, were gone. Then, what seemed like a phoenix company took over our landlords assets, including our leases.

What followed was a rather distasteful way to push new new leases through. I’ll save you the details, but needless to say their existing tenants were none too pleased at the suggested rent hikes. Out of around 30 companies in the building, it seems that all but three have left by now. 22 of us are sharing the costs for a solicitor and have began litigation against the landlords and their phoenix company.

Now as an entrepreneur I’ve been preaching self-reliance and initiative for years. I’ve also been talking more recently about how entrepreneurs need to see every crisis as an opportunity. So here was my chance to practice what I had been preaching.  

Now my staff needs a base. They cannot work solely from home. My clients too need an address in the City: a place where they can work and do business from. So my front room was never going to be an option, neither was an industrial estate in north London. 

No, I, we, need an office that befits a City firm of accountants like St Matthew, to say nothing of an international consultancy such as Mount Bonnell Advisors. Yes, I had been knocked out of my office comfort zone, but like so many things in life the heavens were telling me to move, shift, change. So we got to work. Or really it was my business partner Wendy who took on this task.

First off: location. We need to be based in the City. And with the damage inflicted upon the whole commercial property sector it dawned on me that this was an ideal time to see what was on offer. So Wendy and I got to thinking. Where in the City would we like to be based?

And this is when Wendy mentioned talks to the Royal Exchange.

And as she said it, a memory came back to me. It was the day I arrived in the City of London. From Freiburg via Switzerland I had ended up in London with few contacts if a whole lot of dreams. And one building seemed to sum up all my dreams: the Royal Exchange. 

Founded in the 16th century, the Royal Exchange was opened by Queen Elizabeth I to act as a center of commerce for the City of London. Twice the Royal Exchange building has been destroyed by fire – 1666 and 1838. Twice, it is has arisen from the ashes. Sir William Tite designed the present building, which was opened by another Queen, Victoria, in the 1844. The insurers Lloyd's occupied the premises for nearly 150 years. Traditionally, it is on the steps of the Royal Exchange where certain Royal Proclamations are read out by either a herald or a crier. Following the death or abdication of a monarch, the Royal Exchange Building is one of the few locations where a herald proclaims the new monarch's reign to the citizens of London and beyond.

Built upon a site given by the City of London Corporation and the Worshipful Company of Mercers, the Royal Exchange’s shape is trapezoidal, flanked as it is by Cornhill and Threadneedle Street, which converge at Bank junction where stands the Bank of England. This piece of real estate has been, and still is, at the beating heart of the business and cultural life of the City of London. 

As you can see just reading this, the Royal Exchange is more than just an historic building. It is part of the history of Britain, its political and economic heritage. The question now was: could we become part of that? 

To cut a surprisingly short story even shorter, my businesses and clients now have a new address. It is: 

THE ROYAL EXCHANGE, BANK, CITY OF LONDON.  

Yes, you read that right. A new business premises has been found. There was, however, something else that happened in the process. Remember I said that I had been kicked out of my comfort zone for a reason? Well, the “reason” is that my clients and staff all have a much better working environment, a more prestigious address, and are still based in the very centre of the City of London. But it gets better. The current deal that Wendy negotiated with the Royal Exchange saves my business ￡20,000 per year. Yes, you read that right too. 

It’s been a week when we had to act fast; when we had to employ all the skills and experience that we bring to my consulting for others. It has paid dividends financially, and given a fresh spring to my step as we enter into my new office building, one so resonant of history and tradition, and ambition. 

Covid-19 has brought many woes to many people. Indirectly this horrid pandemic has forced me to act, and, ultimately, to triumph over the adversity it wrought. 

It’s been a good week for my business. I look forward to using the same talents for my clients in the coming months ahead, doubtless a time that will bring many challenges for all concerned.

And thanks to Wendy for sorting it all out!