Real Estate Success Stories for Small Businesses That Dreamed Big
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If you're a new business owner who's recently moved into your first office or retail space, you may be wondering about what the future holds. What sort of growth can you expect, and how fast will it happen?
Will your products or services be noticed by an influencer or a local celebrity, or go viral online?
Whether you're already seeing signs of positive growth or waiting to see what the future holds for your business, it's not uncommon for new entrepreneurs to imagine themselves moving up the world and into a bigger office.
Before we look at some examples of businesses that got their start in a coworking space or similar, here are two examples of big household names that started out small.
From Garage to Googleplex
Google's first office wasn't an office; instead, it was a garage rented by a homeowner in Menlo Park, CA, for extra income.
The two original founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, ended up inviting the homeowner Susan Wojcicki to be a co-founder. They also switched their project's name from BackRub to Google.
Nowadays, Google owns a group of buildings nicknamed the Googleplex in California, with millions of square feet of office space, solar panels incorporated into its roof, and even some beehives outside.
Youthful YouTubers Run From Rodents
YouTube was founded by three ex-Paypal staffers who found bargain-priced office space above a pizzeria in San Mateo, California.
They eventually realized that they were getting what they paid for, as there was a noticeable rat infestation.
Today, YouTube takes up quite a bit of San Bruno, California, especially after a 6.5-acre campus expansion in 2020. Two additional offices are in Los Angeles and London, England.
Other Startup Stories
Other startups were launched from a variety of offices, from coworking spaces to garages to tiny shared offices.
Uber
The ride-sharing app Uber got its start in a coworking space called RocketSpace in San Francisco, California.
During his time there, founder Travis Kalanick-fresh, from his experience as a teenage Cutco knife salesperson, was able to network with other entrepreneurs and secure funding for Uber. Today, Uber is valued at over $70 billion.
Relative Marketing
UK marketing agency Relative was launched in an office so small that a neighboring tech company was also using it to house their IT servers.
Today, the Lancashire-based company has expanded within the same building that housed its original office, earning plenty of five-star Google Reviews from clients and past colleagues.
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company began life as Laugh-O-Gram studio, creating live-action animation. However, a bad business deal forced Disney to file for bankruptcy in 1922.
He moved into his uncle's one-car garage before launching Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio from the back room of a real estate office. Here, he paid $10 a month in rent until selling his first cartoon series.
Hewlett-Packard
Hewlett-Packard founders Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard went into business in 1939 and established a unique connection with another garage startup.
Walt Disney was Hewlett-Packard's first customer, buying eight of their audio oscillators when preparing the 1940 film Fantasia for theaters.
Unlike Disney, they didn't vacate the garage immediately, as Dave Packard and his wife were still renting the house that was attached to it.
Instead, they used it as a research lab, development workshop, and manufacturing facility for nearly a year before the partners outgrew it and expanded to a bigger space.
Today, the garage is a California Historical Landmark and has been restored to its original 1939 appearance.
List & Browse Office Space for Free on MyEListing.com
MyEListing.com maintains one of the largest national databases of commercial property listings in the country.
Use it for free to list and browse office space. Who knows, maybe you'll find your own “HP garage.”
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