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> • Focus on margin expansion vs. growth. We has a differentiated product in the marketplace, and should command a premium. Hm, what exactly does WeWork do tha

> • Focus on margin expansion vs. growth. We has a differentiated product in the marketplace, and should command a premium. Hm, what exactly does WeWork do that is so unique? Sounds like a regular real estate company except they are targeted towards tech startups.

conception 7y ago
That's because that's what it is.
fullshark 7y ago
Brand is worth something. WeWork offices are designed to be appealing to young people (free beer, group activities etc) which makes it appealing to businesses. Also in real estate location, location, location is a differentiator.
- goatinaboat 7y ago
  Imagine you are CEO of an old fashioned company where people do work and revenue > expenses. You want to buy drinks for your staff. Do you a) put your card behind a local bar at happy hour every Friday or b) in an incredibly roundabout way pay premium rent so your staff can enjoy “free” drinks in the office? No. Outside of hipster hotspots WeWork makes no sense.
  - CydeWeys 7y ago
    My previous employer would send an employee with a handtruck each Friday to a local liquor store to bring back beer and wine for that evening. Hard to imagine doing it more economically than that.
    - fullshark 7y ago
      My claim is not that WeWork has some economic advantage in how they distribute alcohol to workers, merely that they have a product that is appealing to 20-30 year olds, and companies want to (presumably) piggy back off it to hire top young talent. It’s the entire package, things like interior decoration, tech, locations, name brand, etc. What’s that worth is debatable but I think it’s worth more than zero.
      - goatinaboat 7y ago
        have a product that is appealing to 20-30 year olds, and companies want to (presumably) piggy back off it to hire top young talent It comes up on HN frequently that what “talent” really wants is an office with a closing door so that they (we) can concentrate. WeWork offers the polar opposite of this experience by design. A company that chooses to base itself in a WeWork is cutting itself off from talent. I think it’s worth more than zero. It’s also possible that it’s worth less than zero.
- eternalny1 7y ago
  No more free beer: https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2018/10/31/18049142/wework-beer-wine-policy https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2018/10/31/18049142/wework-bee...
  - samtheprogram 7y ago
    Anecdotally, I don't think this panned out. I worked out of a WeWork in August (10 months after the article) and there was no key card restriction on the tap. However, compared to the (different) WeWork I worked at in 2017, the tap seemed to get locked up much earlier. Didn't make sense to me at the time versus opening the tap later; it was almost incentive to drink around 5 or 6 instead of waiting until later (I tend to work later) if you wanted a free beer. Also worthy to note: instead of two taps for beer (at my WeWork in 2017), there was one for kombucha and one for beer.
  - ineedasername 7y ago
    But kombucha! Really, The whole booze on tap in the work environment never made any sort of sense to me. It seemed like a short-term recipe for poor productivity (I could be wrong though) and worklplace conflict, and a long-term recipe for lawsuits 10 years out when alcoholics sue for their work environment facilitating or causing their condition. (yes, it's happened before, breweries used to allow it, but stopped)
- rolltiide 7y ago
  I agree. When I tell people I use a co-working space, they hear WeWork space.
chrisseaton 7y ago
Where did you read ‘unique?’ They said ‘differentiated.’
Traster 7y ago
It's not unique, but it is differentiated. They have a brand for a specific type of office, it's got more benefits, it's more flexible and it's frequented by tech start ups. Those are fine things to use. It is going to be almost impossible for IWC to ever look as 'cool' as We.
ineedasername 7y ago
> what exactly does WeWork do that is so unique? My impression is that in addition to being startup-friendly with flexible terms, they give your average remote worker for standard boring companies the startup culture experience in their work environment. I don't know what that's worth in premiums though. Personally, if I was allowed to work from home (yeah, blanket policy of no remote work where I'm at, because stupid) I would rather lounge on my couch with a keyboard in my lap and monitor on a flex arm in front of me.

conception 7y ago

That's because that's what it is.

fullshark 7y ago

Brand is worth something. WeWork offices are designed to be appealing to young people (free beer, group activities etc) which makes it appealing to businesses. Also in real estate location, location, location is a differentiator.

goatinaboat 7y ago
Imagine you are CEO of an old fashioned company where people do work and revenue > expenses. You want to buy drinks for your staff. Do you a) put your card behind a local bar at happy hour every Friday or b) in an incredibly roundabout way pay premium rent so your staff can enjoy “free” drinks in the office? No. Outside of hipster hotspots WeWork makes no sense.
- CydeWeys 7y ago
  My previous employer would send an employee with a handtruck each Friday to a local liquor store to bring back beer and wine for that evening. Hard to imagine doing it more economically than that.
  - fullshark 7y ago
    My claim is not that WeWork has some economic advantage in how they distribute alcohol to workers, merely that they have a product that is appealing to 20-30 year olds, and companies want to (presumably) piggy back off it to hire top young talent. It’s the entire package, things like interior decoration, tech, locations, name brand, etc. What’s that worth is debatable but I think it’s worth more than zero.
    - goatinaboat 7y ago
      have a product that is appealing to 20-30 year olds, and companies want to (presumably) piggy back off it to hire top young talent It comes up on HN frequently that what “talent” really wants is an office with a closing door so that they (we) can concentrate. WeWork offers the polar opposite of this experience by design. A company that chooses to base itself in a WeWork is cutting itself off from talent. I think it’s worth more than zero. It’s also possible that it’s worth less than zero.
eternalny1 7y ago
No more free beer: https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2018/10/31/18049142/wework-beer-wine-policy https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2018/10/31/18049142/wework-bee...
- samtheprogram 7y ago
  Anecdotally, I don't think this panned out. I worked out of a WeWork in August (10 months after the article) and there was no key card restriction on the tap. However, compared to the (different) WeWork I worked at in 2017, the tap seemed to get locked up much earlier. Didn't make sense to me at the time versus opening the tap later; it was almost incentive to drink around 5 or 6 instead of waiting until later (I tend to work later) if you wanted a free beer. Also worthy to note: instead of two taps for beer (at my WeWork in 2017), there was one for kombucha and one for beer.
- ineedasername 7y ago
  But kombucha! Really, The whole booze on tap in the work environment never made any sort of sense to me. It seemed like a short-term recipe for poor productivity (I could be wrong though) and worklplace conflict, and a long-term recipe for lawsuits 10 years out when alcoholics sue for their work environment facilitating or causing their condition. (yes, it's happened before, breweries used to allow it, but stopped)
rolltiide 7y ago
I agree. When I tell people I use a co-working space, they hear WeWork space.

chrisseaton 7y ago

Where did you read ‘unique?’ They said ‘differentiated.’

Traster 7y ago

It's not unique, but it is differentiated. They have a brand for a specific type of office, it's got more benefits, it's more flexible and it's frequented by tech start ups. Those are fine things to use. It is going to be almost impossible for IWC to ever look as 'cool' as We.

ineedasername 7y ago

> what exactly does WeWork do that is so unique? My impression is that in addition to being startup-friendly with flexible terms, they give your average remote worker for standard boring companies the startup culture experience in their work environment. I don't know what that's worth in premiums though. Personally, if I was allowed to work from home (yeah, blanket policy of no remote work where I'm at, because stupid) I would rather lounge on my couch with a keyboard in my lap and monitor on a flex arm in front of me.