‘Cool’ new tenants plan mini makeover
Xero headquarters is in for a mini makeover when its new tenants, BizDojo move in, in six months.
BizDojo, a creative business hub, will move into the Wellington building in November, when Xero shifts into its new offices across the road.
As part of the deal, BizDojo also get naming rights on the Market Ln building. This means it can replace the Xero logo with its own signage.
BizDojo Wellington co-founder Nick Shewring said continued growth in small businesses meant it had outgrown its premises and needed a new place with character and culture.
‘‘We can’t have been the only ones to look at the Xero building and thought, man we could do something incredible in there. So when we learned it was going to be available it seemed a natural next step for us to take over the lease.
‘‘We’ll be making some aesthetic changes to the space to ‘Dojo-fy’ it, by building on the sound interior bones created by Xero.’’
The Market Lane building would serve it well for ‘‘the next 10 years, at least’’, Shewring said.
‘‘That said, we’re also actively pursuing other locations around Wellington and will be looking to triple our business footprint in the city within the next couple of years.’’
The new BizDojo Wellington will able to host up to 450 residents in a community of founders, startups, entrepreneurs, creatives and small businesses.
But Xero will move all of its staff from its Wellington offices into a new building.
Xero founder Rod Drury said he was pleased his ‘‘old digs will have such cool new owners’’.
‘‘We’ve worked a lot with their team mentoring companies and the space has been the launch pad of much global innovation that we’re sure will continue.’’
Shewring said the extra space would mean more collaboration, innovation, and opportunities.
‘‘We’re founders ourselves and we know that the path to growing game-changing ideas and businesses can be lonely, stressful and difficult.
‘‘We are providing a collaborative and supportive environment for founders and entrepreneurs, which means better outcomes and more resilience for our business community.’’
BizDojo, which has operations in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch and will soon open in Queenstown.
BizDojo will take over the remaining three years of the lease on Xero House with further rights of renewal until 2027.