Edinburgh beating Glasgow to big office deals

Edinburgh's Waverley Gate offices, home to the likes of Microsoft. Picture: Jayne Emsley

Data from serviced property firm officebroker.com shows that companies in the Scottish capital were renting space for an average of seven staff, compared to about four employees per firm in Glasgow.

Edinburgh is also enjoying a more buoyant market. The past year has seen a 25 per cent increase in the number of individual firms moving to serviced offices. In Glasgow, uptake remains similar to 2012 levels. However, the bigger city is still attracting 50 per cent more firms than its east coast rival.

Chris Meredith, chief executive of officebroker.com, said: “A lot of larger businesses are being attracted to Edinburgh for office spaces, whereas Glasgow has become a hub for smaller businesses and entrepreneurs.

“It is difficult to explain why larger companies prefer the capital. Part of it could be the prestige, although Edinburgh’s new high speed internet upgrade as well as the improvements to their public transport may have played a part in this too.”

He added that the influx of smaller, less established firms hoping to get a foothold in the city may bode well for the long-term development of Glasgow’s business community as an increasing number of entrepreneurs enter the market.