August 12, 2015

Trupanion is moving cats, dogs and 434 people to Georgetown

Photo courtesy of The Benaroya Co. [enlarge]

The pet insurance company will eventually occupy 108,000 square feet in this five-story office building called Benaroya 6100.

Pet insurance provider Trupanion said it plans to move its headquarters from Ballard to Georgetown next year.

Trupanion is moving to Benaroya 6100, a five-story, 227,200-square-foot office building at 6100 Fourth Ave. S. Trupanion said in a press release it agreed to a 10-year lease with The Benaroya Co. for 108,000 square feet to allow space for growth.

Starting in the second quarter of next year, Trupanion will occupy 70,000 square feet. In 2017, it will expand to 90,000 square feet. Trupanion expects to take the full 108,000 square feet in 2018.

Britta Gidican, Trupanion's director of public relations, said Trupanion has the option of buying the building between the 30th and 40th months of the lease.

Benaroya's website says Sur la Table and Aerotec are also tenants in the building.

Jack Benaroya built the structure in 1976 as a speculative office project. When it didn't lease, he converted it to a gift center, which he sold in 1984. The Benaroya Co. bought the former wholesale mart back in 2005.

Trupanion CEO Darryl Rawlings said in a press release that moving to Benaroya 6100 will allow the company to cut costs and grow.

“We have always been very frugal about our facilities spending — rent is simply a frictional cost that doesn't directly benefit our members. The Benaroya 6100 building is a cost-effective growth solution which should help us continue to drive down our fixed expenses as a percentage of our revenue while gaining brand new, Class A space with all the amenities we need to retain and attract employees,” Rawlings said.

The building has a food truck pod and secure bike storage area. A 100-seat conference room will be added next year.

Trupanion said mYamaguchi Architecture will design its space. Anjali Grant Design will do an in-office daycare center.

Trupanion has grown quickly. Since going public about a year ago, its head count has increased from 335 to 434 employees. The new office space also will have room for more than 200 pets that employees bring to work.

Trupanion currently insures more than 260,000 cats and dogs. The goal is to reach as many as 750,000 over the next five years.

The DJC reported earlier this year that Trupanion was considering moving to a five-story office building being planned for Ballard. Gidican said she was unfamiliar with details about those negotiations but she called the Benaroya building the best option for the company's long-term growth.

Trupanion today leases about 52,000 square feet in two buildings in Ballard.