During the recent economic climate there are still positives within the commercial property sector, especially in Bristol.

During the past 12 months the city has been one of the most active cities in the country when it comes to the construction of new offices.

One such success story is the East Bristol Enterprise Ltd, the award-winning operator of Easton Business Centre's recent announcement that it is merging its operations with those of BEST (Bristol East Side Traders).

Both organisations have sensibly priced commercial property available to rent in east Bristol on easy in, easy out terms and have been involved in delivering major regeneration schemes and innovative enterprise support services within Bristol's Eastside over many years.

BEST has recently acquired and refurbished two classic Victorian buildings, The Old Schoolhouse in Salisbury Street, a thriving venue for artists and the creative industries, and The Old Library, a stunning conversion of the Grade-II listed building in Trinity Road.

Jill Humphrey, director of BEST, said: "I believe that in economic times like this, business people trust organisations that operate as social enterprises.

"Despite the recession, we have had so much interest in these new buildings that they are already some two-thirds full, but we do still have some stunning offices available from just 350 to 2,400 sq ft."

Chris Chapman, chief executive of EBE, agreed, and said: "Our social economy business model and the fact that we offer advice and support to our tenants goes a long towards explaining why, even in times of recession, we operate at 95 per cent occupancy."

Neil Pirie, chairman and founder of EBE, was delighted at the success of the merger negotiations.

He said: "Joining forces will create an organisation with expertise not only in property management, but also in providing excellent business support services, which is so important to the whole community in the current economic climate."

P H Teoh, local entrepreneur and chairman of BEST, went further, saying: "The merger will give us the capacity to continue to support entrepreneurs, new start and existing businesses in the inner city and beyond. As a successful and growing social business ourselves we can help generate jobs and opportunities for people in the east side."

See www.bestworkspaces.co.uk and www.eastbristolenterprise.co.uk for availability.