Maybe your team could have outgrown remote work, client meetings are starting to require a more professional setting, or you’re expanding into a new market and need a physical base to operate from. Whatever the reason, having an office should secure the efficiency of work operations and productivity of the team.

Now the question is: Should you lease or buy?

The Basics Between Lease and Buy

As your business grows, so do your needs. Deciding whether to lease or buy an office space is a strategic business decision. Beyond your core operations, it affects your financial health, flexibility, and company culture.

Leasing is renting a space from a landlord for a set period. Although it’s less upfront cash, there’s a limitation on what you can change.

Here are its benefits and disadvantages:

Buying on the other hand, means you own the building. You have full control over the space and can customize it to fit your brand and culture. Plus, you build equity over time.

Here are its benefits and disadvantages:

Important Factors to Consider

Before you decide, let’s discuss each of the most important factors to consider.

1. Cost

Leasing is usually lower in initial costs, typically a security deposit and first month’s rent. It’s great if you need to preserve capital for hiring, inventory, marketing, or other growth-related spending.

In contrast, buying requires a larger investment: a down payment, closing costs, and renovation expenses. Ownership can become more cost-effective over time, especially if property values rise or you stay put long enough to offset the initial cost.

2. Flexibility

Are you scaling your business? Testing new markets? Figuring out the team size? If so, you can scale up, down, or move as needed through leasing.

If you’re confident in your long-term location and space needs, ownership locks in stability. But if your plans shift, selling or renting out your property adds complexity.

3. Control

Leasing means working within someone else’s rules. You might be limited in how much you can brand or build out of your space. If you need to knock down a wall or reconfigure the layout, you probably need landlord approval and pay for it.

Buying gives you complete control. You can design the space around your branding as you set the ambiance for a client-friendly environment. Of course, with that control comes responsibility: maintenance, upgrades, and any surprises (like a leaking roof) are on you.

4. Company Culture

Your workspace has a direct impact on how your team works and how your clients perceive your business. A fully-branded office can boost morale and a sense of pride in the workplace. Meanwhile, leasing limits how much you can accommodate team preferences.

The Best of Both Worlds

What if you don’t want to choose either of the two?

Maybe you’re opening in a new city, and are not quite ready to buy, so locking into a long-term lease feels too rigid for where your business is right now. That’s where CEO SUITE steps in.

We offer fully serviced offices, meeting rooms, co-working setups, and even enterprise-ready spaces so you’ll have what you need when you need it. It’s the smarter middle ground between leasing and buying an office space. You’ll get:

• A well-known business address
• Flexible terms
• Ready-to-use offices
• State-of-the-art technology
• On-site support

No long leases. No massive upfront costs. Only a professional setup that lets you focus on your business, not on the building you reside in.

Conclusion

There’s no perfect answer that fits every company.

Leasing and buying both have their place. To know which fits best for your business, determine the stability of your company, your long-term plans, and how much flexibility you need.

But if you want an office solution that doesn’t box you in, but rather make you look and operate like the real deal, CEO SUITE can give you exactly that. Check out our services to learn more here.

The post Should You Lease or Buy Office Space? appeared first on CEO SUITE.

What This Means for Hangzhou Businesses

The new  centre at 7–9F, Building B, Ping An Finance Center, 159 Jiangjin Road, Shangcheng District, brings world class workspace solutions to Hangzhou’s business community. Companies of any size can now access premium office space without the complexity and cost of traditional leases. Whether you need an office for one person or a hundred, CEO SUITE provides the flexibility to scale your workspace as your business grows.

The centre offers comprehensive facilities designed to support every aspect of business operations:

•  Fully furnished private offices accommodating 1 to 200 persons
•  Meeting rooms in various sizes equipped with advanced technology
•  Professional event halls for conferences and corporate functions
•  Karaoke room for team building and client entertainment
•  Bar and lounge areas for networking and informal meetings
•  Game room for creative breaks and team collaboration
•  Zen room for focused work and meditation
•  24/7 access with professional security
•  One stop business services including reception, mail handling, and administrative support

The CEO SUITE Difference

Our reputation has been built entirely through exceptional service, hospitality and unwavering transparency. Every member of our team has a minimum of 10 years of experience in the industry, and our centres are managed by professionals who have dedicated their careers to workspace excellence. Our client roster includes Fortune 100 companies who choose to stay with us year after year. They stay because we take our work seriously. More importantly, we take our clients seriously. We take our clients into our hearts.

“Hangzhou represents the future of business and innovation in China, and we are bringing our 28 years of experience to serve this community,” said Paul MacAndrew, CEO of CEO SUITE. “Businesses in Hangzhou can now access the same level of service and quality that has made CEO SUITE the choice of leading companies across Asia Pacific. This is not just about office space. This is about providing businesses with a partner who understands their needs and is committed to their success.”

Mee Kim, Founder of CEO SUITE, added, “For over 28 years, we have built our reputation one client at a time. We do not rely on marketing. We rely on delivering exceptional service that makes our clients want to tell others about us. Our new Hangzhou centre brings this same commitment. Every detail, every service, every interaction is designed with one goal: helping our clients succeed. When our clients succeed, we succeed.”

Why Hangzhou, Why Now

Hangzhou has emerged as one of China’s most important business centers, known globally as a hub for technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship. The city is home to major technology companies and attracts international businesses seeking to expand in China. For companies looking to establish or grow their presence in Hangzhou, CEO SUITE offers an immediate solution with none of the risks and commitments of traditional office leases.

The Ping An Finance Center location in Shangcheng District places businesses at the heart of Hangzhou’s financial and business district, with excellent connectivity to transportation networks, including proximity to Hangzhou East Railway Station and direct access to major highways connecting to Shanghai and other key cities.

The post CEO SUITE Launches New Hangzhou Flexible Workspace appeared first on CEO SUITE.

These factors make China extremely favorable for prospective investors. CEO Suite, Asia’s only one-stop service office provider run by multi-cultural industry experts, has identified some important reasons why prospective investors should consider investing in China.

Availability of capital

In early 2000, almost 20 years ago, China surpassed the United States as the world’s largest beneficiary of foreign capital. Certain conditions in the global capital markets along with a booming economy have led to large amounts of investable capital for China, which are important prerequisites for determining the flow of foreign investment in the country. This influx of capital is attractive to foreign investors and is enticing to international businesses that want to invest in emerging and profitable markets.

Political and economic stability

Political and economic stability in China means consistency and predictableness for investors, which allows for better insight into the future. Since instability could lead to inflation and problems like social unrest that are not conducive to business, both local and foreign businesses appreciate and value China’s environment for law and order. This backdrop not only encourages investments in China, but promotes more efficiency in trade activities as well as long-term growth.

Regional and international trade

Of great importance to foreign investors is the ability to sell products and services regionally and internationally. Besides China’s free-trade zones, other advantages for investors include tax exemptions and free conversion of Chinese currency to any international currency. M, export policies play a key role in deciding whether to enter China, especially for investors anticipating a large market share outside of the local market. China’s regional and international free trade agreements are alluring for stimulating economic activity and business growth.

Large local market

The most attractive feature for investing in China is the sheer size of the country’s large population and, therefore, the great possibilities for growth. As it continues to evolve and mature, investors can expand and profit in many high-end industries, including information technology, engineering, healthcare, robotics, and luxury goods. Opportunities for foreign investors in prospective and current commercial activity will provide positive effects on sustaining business.

Infrastructure and workforce

China’s infrastructure and availability of resources and labor contributes to its appeal for investors. A developing economy requires these to facilitate the sale of goods and services. Roads, bridges, and other physical structures allow for transportation of goods. An educated and competent workforce contributes to success, as well. China’s labor market continues to obtain educations from universities and to become more knowledgeable. These elements enable investors to spend less and make more. And, with employment opportunities comes more income for spending. China’s retail sector persists as foreign investors across all industries open retail locations to benefit from this spending.

There is great opportunity for Western and Chinese investors in China this year as the country continues to create a promising environment for business. Once you decide to invest in China, CEO SUITE can help you maximize your investment. Asia’s one-stop service firm customizes solutions to help businesses of all sizes easily enter China and expand throughout the country with few issues.

Please contact us to discuss expanding your business in China.

The post Reasons Why International Firms Should Enter China appeared first on CEO SUITE.

Outsourcing is simple hiring someone, or an agency that is outside of your internal workforce to do a particular project, or a task. Outsourcing tasks, beyond getting help on a professional level, also provides many great benefits for you, your base staff and your company. Outsourcing has proven to be helpful in many office tasks and have provided incredible results to many companies, the reason why outsourcing is still on a roll up to this day.

Fields that outsourcing is known to be of great help are accounting and booking, organization, social media management, email and mail handling, hiring and recruitment, secretarial, and business registrations. Sure, in the beginning of your business, it may feel as if you can do everything yourself, or your base staff can do everything, but as soon as your business starts picking up, it will eventually be hard for you and your workforce to do everything by yourselves all at once. After all, none of us can be experts at everything all in the same time.

Accounting and Bookkeeping is a task that needs proper focus and demand great amount of time. Outsourcing can save you and your workforce a serious headache and great amount of time, especially knowing that this task doesn’t really need to be done full time everyday.

As with mail handling, it could be draining to receive constant and continuous notifications everyday. This may give you an overwhelming feeling and may also cause you to loose focus and have loopholes of every other thing you also have to do.

Social Media Management, although a very fun task, is also very time demanding. Beyond having just to post something, it also needs detailed plan on timing, content, advertisements, 24/7 availability for customer queries and chats, editing of photos and lay outing digital posters and flyers. The task is easy but it could mean your whole day is also lost.

Outsourcing may need from a great sense of trust to the person or agency you are going to hire, but the great thing about this is you get more in return. It will give you more time to do more things, especially the ones that really need your attention and focus. It also gives you the liberty to hire the best ones, regardless of location, because they can do the job even if they are located in other parts of the world. It can also help you reduce your costs because with outsourcing, you usually find cheaper options than when you hire a full-time employee.

It is a good thing to be hands on to your business, but it is also not a bad thing to be open and not end up micro-managing your business. Outsourcing will help you realize that exploring other options that just your own and your usual system will bring you better and faster results for a cheaper cost.

The post The Help Outsourcing Can Provide Your Business appeared first on CEO SUITE.

Just last year, the Oxford Business Group joined a news conference and made this statement. “It was unthinkable seven years ago, but the Philippines is the best economy in Southeast Asia today. Investors no longer ask why but where and what sectors they should invest in,” Oxford Business Group (OBG) Managing Editor, Paulius Kuncinas, said.
According to the Oxford Business Group, its investment view for the Philippines from year 2016 to 2022 shows that the country’s strong domestic consumption, growing business process outsourcing sector and newfound political stability are some of the major factors for the country’s growth. Philippines’ large, young and fluent English-speaking workforce, plus, very close trade links with other Asian countries are the main lures for investors.

Here are some of the other reasons why the Philippines is good for business:

1. Higher education priority

It is without question that Philippines is one of the countries who takes education seriously. It is in this country that sets Bachelor Degree holders apart from those that didn’t pursue education. It has been reported that the literacy rate in the country is 94.6- among the highest. Philippines is the world’s 3rd largest English-speaking country.

2. Business-Friendly Economy

As per Philippines’ DFA, Philippines’ incentive packages include the corporate income tax, reduced to a current 32%, with companies in the Special Economic Zones are subject to only 5% overall tax rates. Multinationals looking for regional headquarters are entitled to incentives such as tax exemptions and tax and duty-free importation of specific equipment and materials.

3. Hospitable Lifestyle & Lower Manpower Salary Cost

The Philippines is a natural at being the second home to many expatriates who enjoy the company of the warmest people in the world. Filipinos are well known to be very hospitable to foreign visitors. The country’s openness to varied cultures and a ardently global outlook is a cut above the rest. The expats appreciate the accessibility and affordability of both necessities and luxuries in the Philippines- business centers, schools, shopping malls, hotels, housing, hospitals, beach resorts, restaurants, recreation centers and parks, and most importantly, manpower salary cost for their companies.

4. Unrestricted Business Opportunities

ASEAN Free Trade Agreement or also known as the AFTA has been studied and integrated by many Asian economies. It showed and proven how the Philippines is the most strategic location for firms who wants to reach to the large ASEAN market and its enormous trade breaks.

The Philippines continues to grow its economy and welcomes the upsurge of foreign businesses who have realized this lucrative market that has grown its GDP in the past 4 years. As modern and developed as it is, the country’s Central Business District, Ayala – Makati, in particular, have since introduced ready serviced office solutions and business address use for company registration as well as fully-equipped business centres. Specialists in this business in Asia like CEO SUITE offers more than just prestigious business addresses and serviced offices, they also extend complete business start-up solutions that include: a virtual office, company registration services, accounting and personnel hiring services, as well as branding solutions.

Find out more at www.ceosuite.com.

The post Why the Philippines is the Best Place to Set-up your Business appeared first on CEO SUITE.

China’s leadership has always seen gross domestic product (GDP) numbers as the most important indicator of their ability of govern; thus their whole apparatus does whatever it can, in terms of policies, to make sure a politically acceptable growth rate is achieved.

With a persistent slowdown, the government has to adjust its target to a maximized but achievable goal. Between 2010 and 2015, the world’s second-largest economy witnessed a steady slowdown, with annual percentage growth rates of 10.5, 9.5, 7.9, 7.8, 7.3 and 6.9, respectively. Averaged annual GDP growth rates between 1989 and 2009 were around 10 per cent.

Last year, the government set a range of 6.5 per cent to 7 per cent as a growth target, the lowest in decades. As expected, China is on track to meet that 2016 goal after three straight quarters of 6.7 per cent expansion.

However, such growth was achieved with an expansive fiscal policy, higher government spending, a housing rally, ultra-loose monetary conditions and record bank lending, which have also led to an explosive increase in debt.

Reference: www.scmp.com

The post China’s Best Interest Does Not Include Obsessing over GDP appeared first on CEO SUITE.

Indonesia has particularly focused on their export performance the last year through strengthening their commondity prices. As a result, the trade balance of Indonesia showed of USD $990 million in December 2016, higher than the USD $830 million (revised) surplus recorded in the preceding month.

On record, Indonesia has shipped USD $ 144.4 billion worth of goods to its export markets in full-year 2016. Comparing it to the year before, there was a down of 3.95 percent from shipments. However, this decline was much softer than the 15.57 percent (y/y) export earnings decline that occurred in full-year 2015 from 2014.

Meanwhile, Indonesia’s imports in full-year 2016 stood at USD $135.7 billion, down 4.94 percent (y/y) from the nation’s import earnings one year earlier. It led to a USD $8.8 billion trade surplus in full-year 2016, improving from Indonesia’s USD $7.7 billion trade surplus in the preceding year.

Regarding the forecast for Indonesia’s exports in 2017 there should occur an improvement due to the recently unveiled mining rules. Under certain conditions, exports of mineral ore is re-allowed.

Reference: www.indonesia-investments.com

The post Indonesia’s Export & Import Ease in 2016 and Forecast for 2017 appeared first on CEO SUITE.

It has been 2 decades when financial crisis stunned Asia’s business foundations- the time when CEO SUITE had started with only one business centre in 1997, and has since then grown and considered to be the industry leader and the first choice for global workplace with Premium Business Centres across Asia, catering to various industries.

Ever since being established in 1997, CEO SUITE has devoted its life and existence to incomparable hospitality- wherein hands-on management mainly focuses on clients’ needs and details. The company believes that to remain the best in the industry and to incessantly grow even more, clients’ satisfaction is of top most priority.

Now with over 20 years of service, CEO SUITE continues to ensure clients’ satisfaction through providing value in service experience, offering the best business locations, investing and providing luxurious and state of the art facilities and technologies, and delivering highest quality of care and reliability towards CEO SUITE team across all Premium Business Centres in Asia. Hundreds of Blue Chip Multinational companies have witnessed and experienced the CEO SUITE difference.

Living up to its vision to be come the first choice for global workplace solution, and its mission to be an enabler of excellence for clients, their team and the community, CEO SUITE holds dear the company values in each tasks for every client: Sense of Urgency, Care, Openness, Ownership, Trust and Teamwork.

Now with larger network base and reach, CEO SUITE provides different services for all client needs- whether it is serviced offices, instant offices, virtual offices, meeting/boardrooms, and professional services for their businesses, CEO SUITE has it. The variety and flexibility of CEO SUITE offerings range from an office space good for one person, or a larger office fit for a requirement of 50 employees to work in at. CEO SUITE Premium Serviced Offices offers layouts for private managerial suites, to open space plan layouts and customized arrangements for a more cost-efficient approach fit for rising and new businesses.

Enabling not only large scale businesses to grow, but also providing better opportunities for small scale and new companies to excel, CEO SUITE furnished offices are offered in customizable options- can be rented daily, weekly, monthly or on a yearly basis- whatever is the most suitable for any business.

For businessmen with sophisticated tastes and only aim for perfection, CEO SUITE is the perfect solution. Experience the CEO SUITE service excellence, enquire now at www.ceosuite.com.

The post 20 Years of Providing Premium & Luxurious Serviced Offices in Asia appeared first on CEO SUITE.

CEO SUITE has been an industry leader for 20 years now, with its premium business centres instituted in no less than the best and most luxurious business districts in Asian countries such as Indonesia, Philippines, Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, China and Singapore and Malaysia. Beyond its invaluable prestige locations, CEO SUITE offers a cut above the rest- that is, its unrivalled consistency in delivery, credibility and dependability among its differences in culture and traditions.

CEO SUITE has not only become an industry leader, but is also the trusted choice for many blue chip multinational companies for its evident and standard sense of professionalism practiced in each of its premium business centres. Over hundreds of blue chip multinational companies have found satisfaction and awe in the CEO SUITE service, and continues to believe in what CEO SUITE brings to the table for them. With a team consisting of serviced office professionals who have a combined experience in the industry of over 200 years, CEO SUITE has shown and continues to do so how even cultural distinctions can be overcome. CEO SUITE predominantly consists of women leaders with different Asian nationalities but with one set of values, strongly and unswervingly applied in everyday transactions across 19 premium business centres for over hundreds of clients in different business industries.

More than the belief on CEO SUITE values, the most valuable strength and advantage of CEO SUITE team is its actual application of its company values. The sincerity to deliver nothing but the uppermost quality of services to each client goes beyond the business culture dissimilarities, and that is how CEO SUITE binds multicultural experiences.

The post How CEO SUITE Binds Multicultural Experiences appeared first on CEO SUITE.

If you are a small business, and you are having a hard time getting more customers, do not fret. It is totally normal. You are not alone. It is, in fact, a very common challenge for new businesses. All businesses are always looking for ways to expand their customer base so they can sell more. It is important to grow it because having a robust customer base is more dependable when it comes to sales than trying to acquire sales from first time or new customers. Question remains, “how do you get more customers?” Here at CEO SUITE, our global perspective, with our Premium Business Centres in 9 countries, enables us to realize what usually works for many companies. Here are a few tips that any business owner can use regardless of their company size, or budget:

1. Proposition an irresistible offer.

There are many ways to create an irresistible offer. One way is to give free trial of your services for a duration you think is fit for your timeline, and budget too. Another way is to provide many freebies inclusions on the package you are selling; you can also provide return/refund policies. Investing more on your current customers is the way to go. It costs less to generate sales from existing customers than to create new customers. If the case is opposite, then you should come up with an offers that’s irresistible to your potential customers. If you’re confident about the quality of your product or service, you can feel confident knowing that many of these potential customers will convert into actual customers. That pretty much sums up the whole idea for you.

2. Get closer to your clients.

Forming partnerships even beyond business with other related business owners is one of the best ways to grow your customer base. Proximity also plays a great role here, the closer you can get to your customers, the easier and more convenient it is to get to know them better as a company, a business, a client and as a friend. In this way, you will learn how you can help them better and meet their needs and expectations. This is also one way to know how you can improve and develop your products or services more.

3. Provide newsletters.

A newsletter may just be a very small thing, but newsletters are like your informants to clients. You can provide them for free. Through newsletters, you are letting both your current customers and potential customers that you are willing to provide them free and relevant information about your business, your products and/or services.

4. Take advantage of social media and online promotions.

Social media have now also evolved into something greater. You can consider them as an excellent tool to get insights of your audience, and an excellent hand to reach out to new and potential customers. What’s good about this is, you can promote everyday for free or without cost as long as you allot enough time to take care of it. It is also a good way to interact with your audience in real time without having to ask them to visit your official website since a big percentage of population today stays the whole day lurking on their social media accounts.

5. Think BIG!

Many small businesses find it intimidating to make contact or work with big companies. If you are always asking if you can do it despite having such a small company, the answer is simply, YES! We now live in a world where businesses have started thinking differently. Gone are the days when big corporations think suspiciously of small-scale businesses to be their providers. Now, big companies have started recognizing and considering small companies because they usually offer value at much lower costs.

The post How to Grow Your Customer Base appeared first on CEO SUITE.