Swansea as a Business Location
[Last updated April 2023] A guide to serviced offices and office space to rent in Swansea as well as general information that may be useful if you are thinking of renting office space in Swansea.
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History & Geography
Set in the rolling green hills of South Wales near the foothills of the Black Mountains and east of Gower Peninsula, there can be few cities in Europe blessed with a more beautiful setting than Swansea. Swansea Bay is on the Bristol Channel and three-quarters of the city is bordered by the sea. The city itself is bisected by the Tawe River and the Loughor River creating Swansea’s northern border. Like many cities on the coast of Wales, Swansea is thought to have first developed as a Viking trading post. In the 12th century, Swansea became a borough and its residents were permitted to further develop the city. In 1215, King John created a second charter and the city continued to expand. During this time, Swansea became an important port trading in wine, hides, wool and cloth. When the Industrial Revolution occurred, Swansea’s local supply of coal, its port and its already established trading connections with the rest of the country resulted in the city growing even more significantly and becoming the site of major copper smelting works. In the 18th and 19th centuries, many more mines were opened in the area and the mining and creation of arsenic, tin, zinc and potter proliferated. Due to its industrial might, the city expanded rapidly, especially in the 19th century, with its population growth due to immigration from other parts of the country. During the 20th century, much of Swansea’s industry declined, leaving many derelict works and industrial waste heaps. During WWII, the city was a major target for the Luftwaffe and the city centre was almost entirely destroyed. Since then, the city has been extensively refurbished and lately has been the site of a major regeneration effort. Today, Swansea is the second most populous city in Wales after Cardiff and continues to develop its economy.
Economy
For much of its life, Swansea was a major industrial centre, one of the largest in the British Isles, however, with the decline of its industry, Swansea suffered economically. Now the city’s economy is largely based on services with the largest sectors including public administration, education, health, hospitality, banking, finance and insurance. Some of the largest employers in the city are Admiral Insurance, EDS, Morganite Electrical Carbon, Tesco and International Rectifier. The largest public sector employers are the City and County of Swansea, the Department for Work and Pensions, Swansea University and Swansea NHS Trust. Unfortunately, Swansea still has a fairly high rate of unemployment especially compared to the rest of the UK and the city centre offers comparatively little employment, with many of the city’s jobs being in various office parks and other fringe locations. This, in turn, has resulted in the retail sector in the city centre suffering. A major regeneration of the city has been embarked on which will include the development of new office, hotel and conference facilities. Started in 2008, the regeneration is expected to take at least 25 years.
Commercial Property for rent in Swansea
Tourism & Leisure
Swansea is not the first city that springs to mind as a major tourist destination, and indeed tourism is not a bulwark of the economy. But the number of visitors to Wales and Swansea itself is increasing and Swansea’s physical environment is a large part of what allure there is. The city boasts several sizable beaches and recently Langland Bay, Caswell Bay and Llangennith have become popular with surfers. Sailing and waterskiing have also grown in popularity along Swansea’s beaches. Recently, nearby Oxwich Bay was named the most beautiful beach in Britain by travel writers and the Gower Peninsula is immensely popular with hikers and ramblers. The walk from the Marina to the small outlying seaside village of Mumbles offers incredible views of Swansea Bay and Mumbles itself features a Victorian pier and streets lined with restaurants, small arts and crafts shops, and boutiques. Swansea itself also has a bustling waterfront with a beach, promenade, children’s lido, and maritime quarter featuring some of the city’s best museums, the National Waterfront Museum and the Swansea Museum. Swansea is also known for its lively nightlife, which is mostly centred around Wind Street and the Kingsway. The village of Mumbles features one of the area’s most well-known and popular pub crawls, known locally as the Mumbles Mile.
Transportation
The main mode of public transportation in Swansea itself is the city’s many bus routes, operated by Veolia Transport Cymru and First Cymru and originating from the Swansea bus station. First also operate the Swansea Metro which is a bus rapid transit route. Swansea railway station is located approximately ten minutes from the main bus station and connects to Cardiff Central for onward connections to England. Bicycles are not a favoured mode of transport in the city where bike lanes are scarce, with just 4 main routes, however, city cruiser pedal vehicles are being introduced to the city in a joint venture between Swansea Council and the Swansea Business Improvement District. Swansea Airport is a small aerodrome located near the city which serves recreational flights only. Cardiff Airport, 44 miles away is the nearest major airport.
Serviced Office in Swansea
Office space for rent in Swansea
The Swansea office market is heavily reliant on the public sector, which makes up approximately 40 per cent of the workforce of the city.
Following the financial downturn in 2008, take-up levels declined and the city suffers from a massive excess of Grade B office space resulting from the public sector cuts and the generally weak market economy.
At the beginning of the 2010s, the only city centre Grade A office space was London and Wharfedales’ BREEAM Excellent, Langdon House. At the time, the city was in dire need of more city centre Grade A space, yet that was not expected to be delivered soon. At that time, prime headline office rent for the city was being quoted at £14.50 per square foot per year.
Just over a decade on, the city still has a very low supply of Grade A space with the majority being refurbished Grade B space with examples such as The Refinery at Atlantic Close in Swansea Enterprise Park – a park that is occupied by Royal Mail, Barclays and Lloyds Bank. When this is delivered in 2023, it will offer 47,000 square feet of space at a quoting rent of £11 per square foot.
There are 3 flex office space providers in Swansea that provide alternatives to renting office space on a lease and offer workspace solutions on short-term contracts with all-inclusive pricing.
Profiles of these providers can be seen in this directory.
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