SquareFoot is a fast-growing commercial real estate company in the heart of New York City that helps businesses find office space.

Companies that are small enough to operate within distributed office spaces or a coworking unit hope to eventually grow out of them. And to many, the search for a larger, dedicated office space—from finding the right location to working with brokers to secure it—can be exceedingly daunting.

Enter SquareFoot. They begin their services by aggregating open office spaces into one spot, while also keeping consultants and brokers in the mix to help clients close deals. They then make it incredibly easy to browse available listings, tour favorite locations with market experts, and eventually move and settle in. Their clients include Casper, Instacart, Ollie, Frank & Oak, and many more; needless to say, they’re a trusted name when it comes to moving and expanding offices.

Jonathan Wasserstrum, co-founder and CEO of SquareFoot, has personally experienced how daunting it can be to move offices and furnish new spaces. His 60-person team has moved offices five times since SquareFoot started in 2011. He knows how much hassle, time, and money goes into it, which is why when it comes to his own company and the clients they work with, he relies on Branch to handle any and all office furniture needs. This way, he and his clients can get back to building their own companies, and not just their office space.

We spoke with Jonathan to hear his feedback on using Branch and how it compared to the experience of furnishing SquareFoot's old offices.

Q: What was it like getting started with Branch?

A: We’ve moved offices a lot, probably too many times, and dealing with furniture and workstations for our employees has always been a drag. We worked with Branch when we were originally furnishing our current office, and again when we were expanding our headcount and needed more shared workspaces. They made it really easy for us to decide what we needed for our new space, and provided a great service in both delivering the furniture in-line with our schedule, and taking care of the assembly process for everything we got. I didn’t have to deal with anything really, which was the best part of it all.

Q: How did Branch compare to the other options you were looking at?

A: We considered a few options when furnishing our current office, but ultimately it came down to three things for us: price, quality, and ease of service. And Branch hit on all three. There’s office furniture that’s out there at every price point, but the quality can vary tremendously. Branch offered the best quality-for-price that we could find, and we really looked around. And to top it off, Branch included white glove delivery and assembly in our order at no additional cost. From there it was pretty much a no brainer.

Q: Was moving this time around better than your other office moves?
 

A: For sure. This time around, we only had to deal and communicate with Branch, as opposed to any third-party delivery and assembly services. It was easier logistically to move in and, later on, expand, and will be even easier moving forward thanks to Branch Flex. So the next time we move, Branch will pick up our used furniture and give us credit towards our next purchase. That's something nobody else was offering us.

Q: What has been the feedback you've gotten from your team on Branch?

A: They all love the new furniture, especially the chairs. The desks themselves also turned out great, and we decided to go without the privacy panels to enable easier and better collaboration between our teams. Our operations people barely had to do a thing, so in a sense that was best part for them!

Q: What’s your advice to companies that are moving offices?

A: Moving is typically both expensive and distracting. SquareFoot actually has a lot in common with Branch in the sense that we are addressing these issues so that it doesn’t have to be. We’re really two sides of the same coin.

When we’re talking with clients, we tell them that they should ideally get an office that will last a few years—one that they can really grow into. Usually we recommend around 150 square feet per employee; maybe slightly smaller if they’re willing to squeeze. And if they're adding new workstations or replacing old ones, we recommend they use Branch.