Choosing between a downtown Austin office and staying remote for my startup

When we hit 10 people, I had to pick between getting a real office in the Domain area or keeping everyone remote. The office quote was $8,500 a month for a small space, plus all the extra costs like internet and furniture. I chose to stay remote and put that money into better tools and a quarterly team trip instead. It's been six months and our work is just as good, maybe better because people aren't tired from traffic. We meet up at a coffee shop on South Congress every other week for a few hours to talk in person. The saved cash let us hire a part-time bookkeeper, which was a huge help. Anyone else make this choice and find a good way to keep the team feeling connected without a full office?

3 comments

3 Comments

piper_kim10d ago

My friend's team tried the coffee shop thing but got kicked out for staying too long... they ended up renting a conference room by the hour at a library instead.

the_lee10d ago

That's smart, but I'd be careful with the coffee shop meetings. If you're talking business stuff, you might want a private space sometimes.

bennett.evan10d ago

Oh come on @the_lee, how secretive are these meetings really? Most coffee shop chatter is just basic planning or catching up. Unless you're literally sharing passwords or talking mergers, the person next to you sipping a latte does not care about your quarterly goals.