8 ms·

I think WeWork's target audience is also new companies looking to get office space and not just solo workers. It would be hard for a group of 6-8 people, starti

by akadeb 7y ago

I think WeWork's target audience is also new companies looking to get office space and not just solo workers. It would be hard for a group of 6-8 people, starting work on a new project, to congregate at a library/coffee-shop daily. That's probably why leasing an office would be helpful for such folks.

vehementi 7y ago
They also make large offices for big companies
dvt 7y ago
Yeah, this is a fair point, but aren't WeWork prices pretty exorbitant when compared to just renting some real estate through more traditional methods (i.e. an agent)?
- lbotos 7y ago
  My understanding is you can basically be "month to month" with WeWork, where I imagine other options require you to sign a lease.
- arusahni 7y ago
  There's a flexibility in duration and scalability that one doesn't get from a traditional agent/realtor. That being said, I've seen newer, less "hip" flex spaces open to try and target that market.
- stevehawk 7y ago
  They may be but corporate landlords want fairly long term leases. I recently tried to find an office for myself and had trouble finding 'official' office buildings that would do less than a 3 or 4 year lease. If I had a WeWork locally I believe I could do much shorter leases for a small office space.
  - jakobegger 7y ago
    I just rented a small unfurnished appartement and use it as my office. There really isn't much of a market for small offices, but there are plenty of small appartements.
    - erobbins 7y ago
      That could easily run into zoning issues if the neighbors figured out what was going on and didn't like it.
      - smileysteve 7y ago
        Yeah, as soon as you start taking meetings or hiring employees you quickly start breaking insurance, HOA, and zoning. And quickly have to register your business with the city or risk serious fines. If it's your second home that you have your morning coffee in and have a personal office that you do non physical tasks on, and occasionally have a friend or cofounder over for a beer you're looking pretty good.
- eckmLJE 7y ago
  In my experience, commercial agents are looking to close big 10+ year leases, not chase down sub-leases from firms with a little extra space for 6-8 guys.
- keerthiko 7y ago
  they provide a lot of "value add" through economies of scale (happy hours, pizza parties, mini conferences, stocked kitchen, random little "perks", etc) which are factored into the cost, but require no talent or time overhead for the client companies. Think of it as "sexy startup office as a service." Not saying it's a worthy or necessary service this world needs, but I think that's the value they provide and what companies pay for.
  - christudor 7y ago
    Sexy startup office as a service is exactly what it is. The prices are eye-watering, however, and don’t seem to come down much with scale. (A three-person office is about three times the price of a one-person office – at least when I last checked.)
    - fragmede 7y ago
      WeWorks "scale" is 10-person company got their Series A and wants a (semi) custom build-out for 90 people + (private) conference rooms, or a well-funded startup wants to setup satellite offices.
- meritt 7y ago
  Renting from a coworking space (We've never used WeWork but have multiple others) is generally month-to-month with a one-page contract and I can pay with a credit card. Getting an office lease is a huge process with a stack of contracts, pushy agents, ridiculously long leases, misleading prices, hidden costs, furnishing, and establishing all the necessary services. And if you're a small company, the owners are expected to personally financially guarantee the lease.
- diminoten 7y ago
  True, but buying a property is much more cost effective than AirBnB isn't it?
- brudgers 7y ago
  The standard in (US) commercial real-estate is triple net [1] at 10+ years. Everything else is basically a sublet in someone else's office...e.g. WeWork. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NNN_lease https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NNN_lease
- rhizome 7y ago
  You're using 2000s logic! Heroku is much more expensive than pretty much any other hosting model, yet people brag about their H/DO/AWS/etc. bills.
- edoceo 7y ago
  I found a non-weWork type small office building, 250 private sqaure feet, one year minimum lease, cooler neighborhood and 75% the cost of any of the WeWork (et al) type places. We've got a 12 person conference room and three more counting the coffee places and restaurants that have private/reserved area that are all within two blocks. I just didn't want to be "downtown"
- rtpg 7y ago
  leases are really messy. In the US you have leases with lockin, and in places like Japan where you can't force someone to stay in a lease, they instead force you to put up something like half a year's rent(!) as a security deposit.
addicted 7y ago
I believe the majority of We Work rentals are now to large companies.

by akadeb 7y ago

vehementi 7y ago

They also make large offices for big companies

dvt 7y ago

Yeah, this is a fair point, but aren't WeWork prices pretty exorbitant when compared to just renting some real estate through more traditional methods (i.e. an agent)?

lbotos 7y ago
My understanding is you can basically be "month to month" with WeWork, where I imagine other options require you to sign a lease.
arusahni 7y ago
There's a flexibility in duration and scalability that one doesn't get from a traditional agent/realtor. That being said, I've seen newer, less "hip" flex spaces open to try and target that market.
stevehawk 7y ago
They may be but corporate landlords want fairly long term leases. I recently tried to find an office for myself and had trouble finding 'official' office buildings that would do less than a 3 or 4 year lease. If I had a WeWork locally I believe I could do much shorter leases for a small office space.
- jakobegger 7y ago
  I just rented a small unfurnished appartement and use it as my office. There really isn't much of a market for small offices, but there are plenty of small appartements.
  - erobbins 7y ago
    That could easily run into zoning issues if the neighbors figured out what was going on and didn't like it.
    - smileysteve 7y ago
      Yeah, as soon as you start taking meetings or hiring employees you quickly start breaking insurance, HOA, and zoning. And quickly have to register your business with the city or risk serious fines. If it's your second home that you have your morning coffee in and have a personal office that you do non physical tasks on, and occasionally have a friend or cofounder over for a beer you're looking pretty good.
eckmLJE 7y ago
In my experience, commercial agents are looking to close big 10+ year leases, not chase down sub-leases from firms with a little extra space for 6-8 guys.
keerthiko 7y ago
they provide a lot of "value add" through economies of scale (happy hours, pizza parties, mini conferences, stocked kitchen, random little "perks", etc) which are factored into the cost, but require no talent or time overhead for the client companies. Think of it as "sexy startup office as a service." Not saying it's a worthy or necessary service this world needs, but I think that's the value they provide and what companies pay for.
- christudor 7y ago
  Sexy startup office as a service is exactly what it is. The prices are eye-watering, however, and don’t seem to come down much with scale. (A three-person office is about three times the price of a one-person office – at least when I last checked.)
  - fragmede 7y ago
    WeWorks "scale" is 10-person company got their Series A and wants a (semi) custom build-out for 90 people + (private) conference rooms, or a well-funded startup wants to setup satellite offices.
meritt 7y ago
Renting from a coworking space (We've never used WeWork but have multiple others) is generally month-to-month with a one-page contract and I can pay with a credit card. Getting an office lease is a huge process with a stack of contracts, pushy agents, ridiculously long leases, misleading prices, hidden costs, furnishing, and establishing all the necessary services. And if you're a small company, the owners are expected to personally financially guarantee the lease.
diminoten 7y ago
True, but buying a property is much more cost effective than AirBnB isn't it?
brudgers 7y ago
The standard in (US) commercial real-estate is triple net [1] at 10+ years. Everything else is basically a sublet in someone else's office...e.g. WeWork. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NNN_lease https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NNN_lease
rhizome 7y ago
You're using 2000s logic! Heroku is much more expensive than pretty much any other hosting model, yet people brag about their H/DO/AWS/etc. bills.
edoceo 7y ago
I found a non-weWork type small office building, 250 private sqaure feet, one year minimum lease, cooler neighborhood and 75% the cost of any of the WeWork (et al) type places. We've got a 12 person conference room and three more counting the coffee places and restaurants that have private/reserved area that are all within two blocks. I just didn't want to be "downtown"
rtpg 7y ago
leases are really messy. In the US you have leases with lockin, and in places like Japan where you can't force someone to stay in a lease, they instead force you to put up something like half a year's rent(!) as a security deposit.

addicted 7y ago

I believe the majority of We Work rentals are now to large companies.