Jersey-Based Office Space Provider Opens Tehran Office

Flexible office space provider Regus has opened its first office in the Iranian capital of Tehran in partnership with Edge Business Group.

Situated in one of the city’s main commercial centers, Regus says local amenities include five-star hotels, restaurants, banks and shopping centers, in addition to open space in the Mellat Park opposite the building.

Regus says it has seen increasing demand for office space in Iran, with GDP growth expected to hit 4.5% by the end of 2017, UK publication Buying Business Travel reported.

Mark Dixon, chief executive of Regus, said, “Modern, dynamic businesses need to be able to work where they want and when they want, so I am very excited we are adding Iran to a growing global network.”

Regus, also known as IWG plc, is a multinational corporation that provides a global workplace. Founded in Brussels, Belgium, in 1989, the business is incorporated in Saint Helier, Jersey. It is listed on London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.

According to a Guardian report, Iran’s nuclear deal has opened the gate for business expansion and foreign investment, but this growth faces an obstacle: a dearth of high-quality, affordable office space, forcing many foreign companies and big domestic employers to make do with office space attached to malls or shopping centers.

Modern offices of any sort also are hard to find in the capital, because so much of the real-estate investment of recent years has gone into residential towers. Houses and apartments have long been seen as a stable hedge against the economic headwinds of the sanctions era, but comparatively little money has gone into commercial structures.

Back in December 2016, Servcorp, an Australia-based multinational organization that sells serviced office space, virtual office products and IT services, officially inaugurated its first branch in Tehran.

Servcorp was established in 1978 and listed on the Australian Stock Exchange in 1999. As of June 2016, it operates in 150 business centers in 52 cities across 21 countries. The company was founded by Alfred Moufarrige in 1978. In 1980, it pioneered the virtual office concept.

A virtual office provides communication and address services for a fee, without providing dedicated office space.

It differs from “office business centers” or “executive suites”, which do provide physical office space and/or meeting rooms.