COO of Hub Australia, John Preece, wrote an article drawing parallels between Tokyo’s urban management and scaling strategies for coworking spaces.

He presents seven key lessons for operators including designing dense but flexible modular layouts, building reliable invisible infrastructure, fostering culture-based compliance rather than rule enforcement, and creating polycentric networks of locations rather than single large spaces. He emphasizes Tokyo’s approach of decentralized neighborhoods, each with distinct character but connected by efficient transit, as a model for coworking operators to create location families that serve different audiences and needs.

John’s analysis positions Tokyo’s resilience planning, third-space curation, and balance of innovation with tradition as essential frameworks for sustainable coworking growth.

There was quite a lot of buzz around the QSR piece exploring how Starbucks’ new Coffeehouse design is spearheading the once-synonymous-with-third-space coffee chains’ desire to reclaim that legacy.

But when Jake Dudley, head of field ops at Switchyards (click their profile, they’re on a tear), opined on the move – that’s the link that won out for inclusion on this topic – especially since the newcomer brand is quickly building a network of work clubs that often become the third places within the neighborhoods they enter.

The team at Third Space shared their recent opening in Clapham Junction. More than just a gym, Third Space reflects a trend that we’ve been seeing in TWIC week after week: the combination of fitness, workspace and gathering space, branded as a lifestyle club.

Adi Gaskel wrote a piece in Forbes noting that recent research shows that 2023 will be year in which working from third spaces becomes the norm. Using data from OpenTable (interestingly) they note the growing trend among Gen Z of whom 10% note third spaces as their preferred location to work from.

The research also notes that "that cafes are the preferred third place work venues, but participants also use libraries, pubs, parks, and coworking spaces. On average, people working in third places do so 2-3 times per week, staying 15 minutes to 4 hours, and spending $4-$30 per visit."