Rural business centre undergoes further expansion to meet growing demand
A hub for small businesses in Warwickshire is undergoing expansion for the second time in four years to meet growing demand.
The Rural Innovation Centre at Stoneleigh Park opened in September 2013 with 16 offices and was intended to provide a base for fledgling businesses in rural parts of Warwickshire to grow and flourish.
A further 19 offices were added in 2016 as part of the on-going transformation of Stoneleigh Park into a leading centre for rural science, innovation and business.
LaSalle Investment Management, which manages Stoneleigh Park, is now creating an additional 10 serviced offices at the hub. The move brings its total investment into the facility to around £1.3m.
It is converting a separate two-storey building, which backs onto the original centre, to take the total number of offices to 45. The conversion is due for completion next month.
Colin Hooper, estates director at Stoneleigh Park, said: “The Rural Innovation Centre continues to be a real success story and has provided a base for around 70 small and start-up businesses from a wide variety of sectors.
“LaSalle has responded to the continuing demand for this high-quality serviced office space by investing a total of around £1.3m in the overall project.
“Five of the new offices within this latest extension are larger than the existing ones within the Rural Innovation Centre which broadens the range of space available and provides existing tenants an opportunity to expand.”
iVentiv, which organises international learning and development conferences for senior executives within global companies, moved into the Rural Innovation Centre in 2014 and will be relocating to the new building to accommodate its growing team.
Russell Butler, CEO of iVentiv, said: “Since being at the Rural Innovation Centre, our team has gone from three to seven due to sustained growth and increasing demand for our events around the world, and we are currently recruiting to take that figure to 10.
“The location, environment and facilities work really well for us and we’re delighted to be able to continue to grow our business here with the creation of larger offices.”
The centre is equipped with access to ultra-fast broadband as well as reception, meeting and conference facilities.
Amy Rogers, joint manager of the Rural Innovation Centre, said it continued to receive enquiries on a daily basis from businesses interested in moving there.
The conversion is being carried out by Warwickshire-based JW Contracts and Services, which has been the main contractor for refurbishment projects undertaken by LaSalle at Stoneleigh Park.
Pictured outside the new building are, from left: Amy Rogers (Rural Innovation Centre), Max Wareham (JW Contracts and Services) and Colin Hooper (Stoneleigh Park).
