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> not surprised the Googles moved to Kings Cross now its gentrified. I really dont understand why people want to work there. Its a really expensive shithole st

> not surprised the Googles moved to Kings Cross now its gentrified. I really dont understand why people want to work there. Its a really expensive shithole still. Granted there are now lots of new offices full of tech workers, but thats not a selling point. Facebook and google moved out of soho for kings bloody cross. I suspect the real reason is that its the only site left big enough to put multi-thousand person offices in still. (along with the _really_ expensive chain shops that we tech workers apparently need.) People moved to shoreditch because it was cheap, thats why it looked like a shithole. Now it still looks like a shithole, but lacks every other appealing feature.

erdo 5y ago
Yeah I think that's it, there just isn't enough available space in soho and covent garden
Gortal278 5y ago
I think ease of commute is a main factor
- jen20 5y ago
  Yup - both HS1, Thameslink and several "northern" trains go into Kings Cross/St Pancras or Euston (a ~5 minute walk), whereas approximately nothing goes to Old Street.
thinkingemote 5y ago
The big companies have their own free restaurants and even bars inside so employees do not need to leave their buildings. Thus where the place is, is less important than with smaller companies. As a similar example, in silicon valley, they have convoys of buses from the nearby city to their offices. Where they work means nothing much. Additionally being close to other companies is less important for networking when you are a monopoly!
walshemj 5y ago
Better transport links you have two on the mainline stations next door and Euston is a 10 min walk. Soho is cool but not many large modern office blocks.
als0 5y ago
I would wager that their close proximity to King's Cross station is to bring in talent from Cambridge, which is only 45 minutes away.
45ure 5y ago
You are labelling these locations as a 'shithole' without offering any real perspective. The urban regeneration, around the Google site and Kings X has changed the area considerably to shed its gritty image, even if it still lacks some soul. The transport links might be the key factor, but it is also situated in proximity to world leading universities and academic institutions (UCL/Birkbeck/SOAS/UoW/LSE), notwithstanding The British Library. You would be hard-pressed not to find exciting places, teeming with vibrant culture, within a mile radius. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jun/01/google-submits-plans-million-sq-ft-london-hq-construction-kings-cross https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jun/01/google-su...
- KaiserPro 5y ago
  Soho is pretty much equidistant to UCL, and is closer to kings. Everything is close in london. My issue is this, Kings Cross is basically what someone thinks a "tech hub" should feel like, rather than what will naturally pop up over time. My company is moving from Soho, which is a nice vibrant (now sadly diminished) cultural center, to kings cross. Everything is private land in kingscross, which means that the local council has no real control over what happens there. This means no real chance for markets, or passion shops that only have a tiny amount of capital to start up. Soho has three market pitches, shoreditch has at least 2. Kingscross has none, and if they did, they would be charging eye watering pitch fees. This means that there is almost no chance of new local stall popping up and building out a presence. (Unless mummy & daddy provide cash) Which means that all the shops are both expensive and "boutique" Shoreditch on the other hand was a working class, vibrant community. Most of the locals, barring the oldies who have council houses have left. When industry started leaving, and the artists started moving in, there was a time of creativity(90s early 2000s). Things looked scummy because there was no money, not because it was the USP of the area. The USP was it was cheap. Now there is loads of money, a decimated local community, but everything is kept in a state of shabbiness because people think that's what made shoreditch special. Its a zoo for people to pretend to be working class and or cool, when in practice they are neither.
  - lewisflude 5y ago
    I actually went for dinner nears Kings X the other day, and there is a little market section near St. Martins https://canopymarket.co.uk/ https://canopymarket.co.uk/ Although I actually totally agree with you. Kings X not having as much public land makes the entire place almost feel pre-gentrified if that makes sense. Not much soul.
dukeyukey 5y ago
Kings Cross has amazing commuter links, that's why. 45 minutes to Cambridge really opens up your options.

erdo 5y ago

Yeah I think that's it, there just isn't enough available space in soho and covent garden

Gortal278 5y ago

I think ease of commute is a main factor

jen20 5y ago
Yup - both HS1, Thameslink and several "northern" trains go into Kings Cross/St Pancras or Euston (a ~5 minute walk), whereas approximately nothing goes to Old Street.

thinkingemote 5y ago

The big companies have their own free restaurants and even bars inside so employees do not need to leave their buildings. Thus where the place is, is less important than with smaller companies. As a similar example, in silicon valley, they have convoys of buses from the nearby city to their offices. Where they work means nothing much. Additionally being close to other companies is less important for networking when you are a monopoly!

walshemj 5y ago

Better transport links you have two on the mainline stations next door and Euston is a 10 min walk. Soho is cool but not many large modern office blocks.

als0 5y ago

I would wager that their close proximity to King's Cross station is to bring in talent from Cambridge, which is only 45 minutes away.

45ure 5y ago

You are labelling these locations as a 'shithole' without offering any real perspective. The urban regeneration, around the Google site and Kings X has changed the area considerably to shed its gritty image, even if it still lacks some soul. The transport links might be the key factor, but it is also situated in proximity to world leading universities and academic institutions (UCL/Birkbeck/SOAS/UoW/LSE), notwithstanding The British Library. You would be hard-pressed not to find exciting places, teeming with vibrant culture, within a mile radius. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jun/01/google-submits-plans-million-sq-ft-london-hq-construction-kings-cross https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jun/01/google-su...

KaiserPro 5y ago
Soho is pretty much equidistant to UCL, and is closer to kings. Everything is close in london. My issue is this, Kings Cross is basically what someone thinks a "tech hub" should feel like, rather than what will naturally pop up over time. My company is moving from Soho, which is a nice vibrant (now sadly diminished) cultural center, to kings cross. Everything is private land in kingscross, which means that the local council has no real control over what happens there. This means no real chance for markets, or passion shops that only have a tiny amount of capital to start up. Soho has three market pitches, shoreditch has at least 2. Kingscross has none, and if they did, they would be charging eye watering pitch fees. This means that there is almost no chance of new local stall popping up and building out a presence. (Unless mummy & daddy provide cash) Which means that all the shops are both expensive and "boutique" Shoreditch on the other hand was a working class, vibrant community. Most of the locals, barring the oldies who have council houses have left. When industry started leaving, and the artists started moving in, there was a time of creativity(90s early 2000s). Things looked scummy because there was no money, not because it was the USP of the area. The USP was it was cheap. Now there is loads of money, a decimated local community, but everything is kept in a state of shabbiness because people think that's what made shoreditch special. Its a zoo for people to pretend to be working class and or cool, when in practice they are neither.
- lewisflude 5y ago
  I actually went for dinner nears Kings X the other day, and there is a little market section near St. Martins https://canopymarket.co.uk/ https://canopymarket.co.uk/ Although I actually totally agree with you. Kings X not having as much public land makes the entire place almost feel pre-gentrified if that makes sense. Not much soul.

dukeyukey 5y ago

Kings Cross has amazing commuter links, that's why. 45 minutes to Cambridge really opens up your options.