Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Serviced Offices Help Companies Cope With Higher Operating Costs

Recently, four of the Emirates have been establishing innovative offerings for the serviced office concept. Fujairah, Ajman, Hamriyah (Sharjah) and RAK are beginning to offer unique serviced office facilities to assist new companies that are planning start-up operations in the United Arab Emirates. The serviced office facilities will help companies to establish a presence in a more cost effective manner than the traditional serviced office concept.

Higher operating costs in Dubai and Abu Dhabi are discouraging smaller start up companies from establishing a presence in the United Arab Emirates. The new serviced office concept which targets these companies is offered in a lesser known free zone with services including e-Office and Flexi-Desk. The unique serviced office space has the address of an office along with meeting rooms and telephone numbers of an office. The difference is that the client is not actually in the office space.

The e-Office serviced office facilities in Ajman free zone offer table space with access to high speed Internet. The center houses business desks with interiors and facilities including meeting rooms, board rooms, and a restaurant.

The Flexi-Desk serviced office facility in the RAK Free Trade Zone is a shared and networked desk which is designed for single person users such as self-employed businessmen. A furnished and semi-enclosed office is offered with one executive desk and chair along with a private email address and separate post office box number.

These four Emirates have recognized there is a growing trend by start-up companies to seek economical options and the new serviced office concept being offered in Fujairah, Ajman, Hamriyah (Sharjah) and RAK is a solution to bridging this gap. The cost difference between the Dubai Airport Free Zone Authority and the Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority and the four new free zones in the Emirate varies from five to ten times. This is motivating the smaller companies to go for the serviced office Flexi-Desk concept. The ease of getting a license is also very convenient with Fujairah Free Zone offering a ‘One Visit, One Window, One Hour’ operation.

Serviced office Flexi-Desk is also convenient for investors who desire to operate with minimum resources and only have one or two visa requirements. With Flexi-Desk, these companies can open a bank account anywhere in the United Arab Emirates and export or import goods from any of the seaports in this region.

Serviced office start-up costs are much higher in the Dubai Airport Free Zone Authority and the Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority and many times there is a wait list of up to 30 days. The serviced office Flexi-Desk has been successful in bridging this gap for small start-up companies trying to establish a presence in the United Arab Emirates.