SpareFoot’s Austin Offices
Self-storage marketplace company SpareFoot recently moved into its first office in Austin, TX. The company has used a semi-industrial style to capture a bit of the flair storage units provide. The space is fairly sparse in decoration, but as a start-up company, it provides them with a lot of area to expand as the company grows.
Some notes from SpareFoot:
“Their building, the historic Perry Brooks Tower, sits only a block away from the infamous Sixth Street in Downtown Austin. Just across the street is Capital Factory, the hub of Austin’s startup scene that gave birth to what became SpareFoot. They left their two floors as raw and open as possible with exposed concrete floors and ceilings. As homage to the units in self-storage facilities we serve, we have several roll-up doors that serve as room dividers.
SpareFoot believes in transparency. Every employee has access to the company’s financial performance, and nearly every meeting is open to anyone who wants to attend. Our physical space is consistent with that philosophy–private offices aren’t a thing. Even the co-founders have easily accessible desks in our open floor plan. Several televisions in the space show live updates of sales goal tracking, server load, and customer activities on our websites.
SpareFoot’s co-founders and several of the early employees are sushi nuts. Four years ago, a few employees went out for sushi for a developer’s birthday and downed several rounds of sake bombs. A tradition was born – now every new SpareFoot employee gets a warm welcome of sushi and sake bombs. The SpareFoot conference rooms bring home the love of sushi with names like Unagi, Toro, and Madai.
Like any good startup, SpareFoot takes their in-office recreation seriously. When SpareFeet take breaks from making self-storage great, they train hard with their in-house games of foosball, pop-a-shot, and beer pong. Shuffleboard, darts, and ping pong fill out the repertoire and complete the list of events at the annual Austin Startup Games.
One of the newest additions to the team is a chef. Around 11:30 every day, the smell of his delicious meals start to fill the building. Hungry SpareFeet file up to the fourth floor and share everything from kimchi tacos to shrimp po-boys. A team that eats together stays together.
All these things considered, SpareFoot has become and will forever remain a great place to work. Just ask Austin Business Journal who recently just awarded them the award for Best Place to Work in Austin for the medium business category.””
