Today we’d like to introduce you to Robert and Kelly Ramsden.
In the 1980s and 90s, Robert and Kelly Ramsden had been working at separate jobs at a large corporation when they decided they wanted to work together using their skills and talents in a more rewarding fashion. Preparatory to their exit from big business in 2000, they researched franchises available in South Florida and discovered Intelligent Office.
That same year, they opened their first suite of rentable office space in Sunrise, in a modern new corporate park with easy access to Sawgrass Mills and the Sawgrass Expressway. In 2002, they contracted with Intelligent Office for the entire South Florida market and opened their second location in Coral Gables. This was followed in 2006 with locations on Brickell Avenue in Miami and in Boca Raton.
A decade after their first purchase, Bob and Kelly, with son Patrick Ramsden, created their own brand, Office Edge, and began to differentiate their company by enhancing rental office space with high-value office, administrative, and legal support services. In 2011, they opened their fifth location in Fort Lauderdale and have never looked back.
Fortunately, the couple learned early on that they work exceptionally well together, each complementing the other’s experience and assets. From their first location forward, they also learned the value of building a service offering around real business needs, based on listening to clients describe their pain points in starting up and managing businesses of all types and sizes.
This unique ability created the Office Edge Difference and continues to guide the couple in developing new services for their clients. In 2018, Office Edge completed an extensive renovation program at all five South Florida offices, from new furnishings and technology to fresh paint, carpeting and decor.
“Office Edge and its sister company Legal Edge Services have served business and legal clients in South Florida for almost 20 years,” said Robert Ramsden, President. “With this latest renovation, we’ve once again brought the professional office environment to a new level of elegance, comfort, and productivity for our clients.”
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
In starting up any new business, even leveraging a franchise model at the outset, there are predictable and unforeseen pitfalls along the way.
Locating office space at prestigious business addresses proved challenging more than once. Developing and maintaining steady revenue streams was also a challenge, sometimes requiring infusions of personal cash or bank loans to bridge the gap. But with solid faith in each other, and confidence in their innovative business model, Bob and Kelly made it work.
Today, Office Edge is celebrating its 19th year in business, and their first client is still actively working from his Office Edge executive suite.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Office Edge – what should we know?
Office Edge and its sister company Legal Edge Services offer customized office solutions and prestigious business addresses for business owners, remote professionals, attorneys and entrepreneurs who demand a productive working environment with access to a full range of administrative and paralegal support services.
From full-service executive suites, day offices, virtual offices and well-appointed conference rooms to live reception and call handling, private mail, video conferencing, court reporting, deposition support, full accounting services and more, our company delivers an unprecedented level of service to clients across a wide range of industries.
One of the things we’re most proud of is the way we’ve been able to grow and develop our Office Edge team since early on. We’re avid investors in our people because they are the front line of service delivery for our clients. We train them stringently and reinforce that training regularly, and not only has it benefited our clients, but many of our best employees have become business owners and attorneys themselves over the course of time.
Another point of pride is in operating a socially responsible business here in South Florida. We work in partnership with our clients to help them grow their businesses domestically and internationally, and this commitment has resulted in the retention of nearly 10% of our clients over 19 years.
In an industry as competitive as ours, that’s an impressive number. And while client loyalty speaks volumes about our service quality, we also want to see clients outgrow Office Edge and move into their own company spaces. Our offices are elegant, prestigious, highly functional and finite—and we want to be able to continue our work helping new start-ups and small businesses to grow and prosper.
We’re very active in the South Florida community, and live in the heart of the Brickell business center. We’re active members of the Florida Lawyers Network, Broward County Women Lawyers’ Association, and multiple Chambers of Commerce in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties.
Do you feel luck has played a role in your life?
By far our greatest luck was in meeting each other! Without that connection, and working really well together, the rest wouldn’t have happened.
When we started our business, the original franchisor was promoting the Virtual Office concept. This was back in 2000 when no one knew what it meant. So, we began evangelizing the Virtual Office in South Florida—building interest in the idea, educating business owners and sole practitioners in the benefits for them, and essentially creating demand for this innovative offering.
Today, every competitor includes virtual office services in their portfolio. Office Edge is able to provide these services much more cost-effectively because we invoice by the minute so that our clients only pay for what they use. We’ve adhered to our innovative business model, offering world-class office space and a wide range of services, and feel very fortunate in our success!
Pricing:
- Turnkey Office space from $900 to $3,000 per month per office. Includes all overhead and a robust package of services tailored to client needs.
- Business Address services under $100 per month. Includes prestigious business address with a suite number, secure private mailbox, and mail services.
- Meeting Rooms starting at $20 per hour. Choices include small, mid-size and large conference rooms with services.
Contact Info:
- Address: 701 Brickell Avenue, Suite 1550, Miami FL 33131 (Headquarters)
- Website: www.officeedge.com
- Phone: 305.728.5200
- Email: info@officeedge.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficeEdge/
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company/office-edge/
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