Serviced Offices for Rent in Kolkata – Why Salt Lake Sector V Is Ideal for Professionals

A few years ago, you might have thought of Kolkata only as a historic, colonial city reeking of jhaal muri and nostalgia. If you thought that, you’ve been misinformed. The city has seen an influx of IT and related businesses in the last few years, which has fuelled demand for serviced offices for rent. 

Kolkata is now one of the major IT hubs of Eastern India, and starting a new venture there has become an attractive proposition for many entrepreneurially inclined individuals. This isn’t hyperbole or wishful thinking but hard numbers of actual startups and real people. If you are a professional or an entrepreneur, there are a few questions that you should be asking yourself as this opportunity unfolds.

If you are already asking yourself why and how, we’ll give you the answers.

1. Where should you set up office – Central Kolkata or Salt Lake Sector V?

Location is of paramount importance in business, and Kolkata is no exception. While setting up shop in Central Kolkata may have its charm, it’s no longer the place to do business in. Salt Lake Sector V or New Town are the preferred locations because they are the major IT Hubs and part of a designated IT Corridor with direct connectivity to the EM Bypass. They also have excellent connectivity to Central Kolkata via the East-West Metro. Placing your business in this location will communicate to your client that you are a professional and serious about your work. Infinity Business Centre is located in Salt Lake Sector V and instantly gives you the credibility of having a proper business centre in Kolkata.

2. How do you keep overheads low?

3-year lock-in periods and lakhs of rupees in fit-outs are things of the past for startups. In this day and age, the shrewdest financial decision you can make is to take a serviced office for rent. With low, all-inclusive monthly rents and flexibility to the extent that you can join, upgrade, or downgrade your space with just 3 days’ notice (or less), serviced offices are a no-brainer. Instead of sinking your money into something non-liquid like furniture and cabling (capital expenditure, aka CapEx), you can save that money and put it into liquidating your business (marketing, product, etc.). With serviced offices for rent, you de-risk your entry into a new market.

3. How do you meet local contacts in the ecosystem?

Don’t operate in silos. Kolkata is all about community, and embracing that culture is key to unlocking your success. Simply being in a coworking space or shared workspace is the gateway to connecting with other professionals and entrepreneurs in the same field. Attend events and functions regularly to create goodwill in your community. NASSCOM (National Association of Software and Service Companies) usually has events or meetups (many of which happen in Sector V) for the purpose of networking with like-minded individuals. Initiatives like “Startup Bengal” are also great ways to network within the local startup scene. You’ll be amazed at the collaborations that just “happen” in a shared space – the accountant, creative designer, or lawyer you may have been looking for could be sitting at the next desk!

4. How do you future-proof your workspace?

The future can change in the blink of an eye. A flexible office space gives you the ability to scale up (or down) easily without having to move to another address. Just like you’d scale manpower (freelancers, contractors, etc.), the same applies to office space. Infinity Business Centre offers flexible private offices for rent in Kolkata so that you are never stranded with too little or too much space. If your office needs can change overnight, why be stuck with a sticky office lease? Make sure your provider has a range of flexible office rooms with varying sizes and facilities to meet your current needs and for the future as well.

5. How do you attract the best local talent?

Kolkata produces some of the best talent in India, thanks to educational institutions like Jadavpur University and IIM Calcutta. But great talent doesn’t just work anywhere – it’s more discriminating than that. If you don’t have a professional office on rent for your employees to work in, you will struggle to recruit and retain high-quality talent. The last thing you want is an engineer working on your network from a home office or the corner table in a coffee shop. A fully furnished office on rent with proper facilities is essential. Infinity Business Centre offers premium coworking spaces for rent for this exact purpose. A pleasant working environment can go a long way to recruitment and employee satisfaction.

6. How do you access government support?

Go and learn the West Bengal government’s scheme by scheme, and what provisions are available for MSMEs and IT start-ups specifically. “Silicon Valley Asia” in New Town is one such example (New Town Kolkata is often just referred to as “NTK”); there are also special schemes and incubators in Sector V as well. Any office on rent at a recognised commercial hub or private office usually goes through a due diligence process, whereas a residential address may not.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

• Will renting a professional office hurt our family financially?

This may seem counterintuitive, but traditional leases with fixed lock-in periods and rent are actually the higher financial risk of the two, since you’re committing your family’s funds and credit to an arrangement for up to 3 years at a time. Renting a serviced office actually makes your family’s financial life more flexible because you have less risk. You don’t have to sign on the dotted line for a long period. You can move or downgrade your membership with a month’s notice or less, or suspend membership completely, if you need to. A well-serviced office ensures that you are never overleveraged or carrying debt that you can’t service, and therefore is in the best interests of your family.

• Will the commute to these business hubs be stressful?

Kolkata’s newer business districts are some of the best planned in the state. It’s a lot more organised and well-thought-out than parts of South Mumbai, Bangalore, or Gurgaon. The Metro Railway is currently expanding and will soon be connecting Sealdah to Sector V and beyond, so commuting is reliable and secure. And did we mention that the commute to Infinity Business Centre is much shorter and more predictable than from certain parts of North and Northwest Kolkata?

• Are shared spaces safe for my equipment and data?

Security is an important criterion for any provider, which is why most premium centres provide 24×7 security, CCTV cameras, and swipe cards for entering office spaces. Your private office would be lockable, as is the furniture and equipment. In terms of data security, Infinity Business Centre provides you with a high-speed firewall as opposed to your home Wi-Fi connection. Moreover, there is zero tolerance for theft or other anti-social behaviour.

Your time to shine is now

Change is in the air, and Kolkata is the place to be. The city has the first-mover advantage, the infrastructure is in place, and the talent is abundant. All you need to do is take that first step towards professionalism and choose a modern, smart workspace that will help you and your business stand apart.

The future belongs to the nimble and flexible. Don’t get tied down by archaic leasing structures.

So don’t wait – the future is waiting for you!

Contact Infinity Business Centre today for a tour of our state-of-the-art facilities at the heart of Kolkata’s IT hub, and let’s build your future together.

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