Duke Of York Opens Box London Office

The Duke of York has formally opened Box’s London office, which will serve as both its international headquarters for business outside the US and its tax base.

David Quantrell, senior vice president for EMEA at Box, said it was a milestone in the Box journey and a sign of the enterprise cloud storage specialists’ continued expansion into Europe.

“As we expanded in Europe and witnessed growing demand for Box, we decided that London was not just an ideal location for an office, but also a great place to establish an official headquarters for our international operations,” he said. “London is a central hub in the world economy and home to a fantastic pool of talent.

Box London

“Just as importantly, the UK government’s Patent Box regime and other recent economic initiatives provide us with a supportive environment for continuing to grow and expand aggressively around the world.

“A year ago we said we would get 100 people by the end of 2013 and start to build out our operations in EMEA. We truly are locating our international headquarters in London.”

The London office employs 80 people, the majority of whom are involved in sales, although a technical support team is being established in the capital.

Quantrell said the decision to locate the company near Marble Arch rather than in East London’s Tech City area was because traditionally, IT companies have been clustered around the west of London and the location makes it easier for the available talent to commute.

London as a technology hub

He said the design of the office, which includes half a hackney cab used as a meeting room, was meant to evoke the ethos of Box’s office in Silicon Valley in the belief that innovation could be easily fostered if people were comfortable.

The Mayor of London Boris Johnson has welcomed Box’s arrival in the capital, declaring it to be a sign that London is an ideal environment in which to conduct business, and has growing credentials as a technology hub.

“It is fantastic news that one of Silicon Valley’s finest, Box, has opted to locate their non-US headquarters in London,” he said. “This arrival is further welcome evidence of London’s status as a leading tech capital helped by the availability of a talented workforce, the work space and world beating universities.”

Box also has offices in Paris and Munich and the company told TechWeekEurope at its Boxworks event in San Francisco last month that it was looking to expand further, with Japan, Brazil and Australia all mentioned as potential locations.

The Duke of York, Prince Andrew, has taken an interest in London’s tech industry, having previously opened the Yammer office in the capital in 2012, as well as opening a tech internship fair in London this year.

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