What a year!
As the year comes to an end, we wanted to thank you all for all you do for your communities.
On the mail-front, at iPostal1 we saw a doubling in number of workspace locations, and sent $36M in revenue to our partner network.
iWorkSpaceMail launched seamless digital mailbox integrations for your members within OfficeRnD and Deskworks.
Wondering what’s with the gift basket? Email subscribers got an exclusive 1-click raffle. Missed that? Subscribe for official email summaries today.
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📰 Coworking news & views.
💡 CEO shares insights after 5 years in coworking #
Colleen Moselle, CEO of Coco, shared insights she’s gained over the five years she has spent in the coworking industry, focusing on the power of human connections. Congrats to Colleen on your anniversary!
👉 Read this.
🎨 700k sqft former AIG NYC HQ repositioned #
The building that used to be AIG HQ in NYC is now being repositioned for workspace for the creative jet-set crowd. Designed by renowned high end hospitality designer Gabriella Khalil. The FiDi 700,000-square-foot, 31-story tower is being rebranded as WSA, for Water Street Associates. A cafeteria, photo studio, recording studio, screening room, test kitchen, a place to film in XR, and a lounge with a bar are all slated to open. There are already conference rooms for client meetings and event spaces to host readings or galas
The floors are being used to showcase art installations, pop-ups and actual workspaces that look like they have come out either a dream or an Architecture Digest. Click through to the Curbed article – these spaces must be seen to be believed.
👉 Read this.
💰 Workbar hits record premium above market office rent #
Workbar‘s Back Bay location has demonstrated exceptional performance, growing from operational break-even within six months of opening in 2018 to generating $27 per square foot above market rent in 2024. The location’s revenue has consistently increased despite declining traditional office rates, with premiums growing from $12 PSF in 2020 to $19 PSF in 2023, driven by strong demand for coworking memberships.
Curious to learn more about Workbar and their CEO Sarah Travers? Tune into this recent episode of the TWIC Podcast to hear her chat with Hector.
👉 Read this.
🚨 Concern raised over 20% commissions #
Adam Blaskey warns against the growing trend of operators offering 20% broker commissions, double the traditional 10% rate. Instead of relying on increased commissions to drive year-end sales, he suggests focusing on better broker education about space benefits, reviewing pricing strategies, and recognizing seasonal business patterns. His primary concern is that excessive commission rates could threaten operator profitability, especially for short-term agreements.
Brokers’ commissions is a trend we’ve been following closely across some markets – but what do you think? Worth setting a precedent with higher commissions? What if others double what you’re willing/able to pay? And more importantly, are prospects confident they’re still being recommended the best long-term solutions?!
👉 Read this.
👩🏻⚖️ A checklist of legal requirements for opening a coworking space #
Cobot shared an excellent blog post providing a great deal of information on the legal requirements you may (or may not) be aware of when opening a coworking space.
👉 Read this.
🖼️ Vizualizing a business as a coworking space #
Friend of TWIC, Cat Johnson, shared a fun sketch of how she visualized all the different components of her services like they were parts of a coworking space. One, for certain that we’re happy to cowork at!
👉 Read this.
📝 A great set of marketing steps for coworking spaces #
Helga Moreno at Spacebring shares a pretty lengthy guide to a lot of the ways you can market your coworking space.
Definitely pair this reading with the recent Coworking Marketing Trends roundtable episode of the TWIC Podcast.
👉 Read this.
👩💻 Notes from building from space to tech co #
Barbara Sprenger shares lessons from their journey from creating coworking spaces in 2009 to building the software solution that is now known as Deskworks.
👉 Read this.
🍾 Colony coworking promotes Rebecca Cox to managing director #
Colony, a flexible workspace provider, has appointed its Operations Director, Rebecca Cox, to the role of Managing Director after three years of significant growth. Under her leadership, the company has doubled its locations, quadrupled staff size, and achieved a tenfold increase in membership. Congrats to both Colony and Rebecca!
👉 Read this.
📄 Avoid these holiday party insurance risks #
Tim DiPietro, an insurance expert and founder at StartSure, shares an article spotlighting why Host Liquor Liability insurance is crucial for coworking spaces hosting holiday events, as operators can be held liable for alcohol-related incidents – even after guests leave the premises.
Most General Liability policies include this coverage, but coworking operators should verify their specific policy coverage. Key safety recommendations include limiting alcohol served, hiring licensed bartenders for larger events, and arranging transportation options for guests.
👉 Read this.
🎥 Disney+ Spain to launch coworking comedy series #
Comedy creators Rober Bodegas and Alberto Casado will develop and star in "Entrepreneurs", a new Disney+ Spain series launching in 2025. The plot follows Gonzalo, a bar owner’s son who opens a coworking space with self-proclaimed guru Jacobo, while being supervised by his sister Julia.
We have long believed that coworking is ripe for a sitcom take a la "The Office". We’re not sure if this show will be available globally, but if someone knows someone who could help us plan a global premiere (with subtitles) – hook us up!
👉 Read this.
🙅 Ever seen a space marketed on stuff you don’t need? #
Patrick Hemus hits it home with this superb example of how to promote a local space via video on LinkedIn… by focussing on what folks DO NOT need to bring with them, or worry about, when using the Maggie O’Neill Business and Training Centre. Nicely done Patrick!
👉 Read this.
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💻 Coworking technology.
🎟️ Making coworking even more valuable with $250k+ in perks #
included.co and BuiltFirst have announced a partnership to help coworking spaces further reward their members.
The partnership makes it easy, and affordable, for coworking spaces of all sizes to run powerful member perks programs. The coworking-focused offering comes pre-loaded with a set of perks valued at over $250,000 from top firms like Stripe, Hubspot, Airtable, Notion, and Segment.
You may not know this, but Hector Kolonas founded included in 2013 with the big hairy audacious goal of making coworking a no-brainer by bundling in enough discounts and deals to make the membership-fees negligible. He shares thoughts on the deal here.
👉 Read this.
✈️ Global business travel platform gets meeting space bookings #
hubli is now integrating with Amadeus Cytric, to integrate meeting venue bookings into their corporate travel platform, allowing users to book flights, accommodations, and meeting spaces in one place. The integration addresses a significant need, as over 60% of business travel is meeting-related, yet most booking remains manual. The meeting space industry, valued at $598.2 billion in 2022, is projected to reach $2.3 trillion by 2032.
hubli (led by Ciaran Delaney) has always been at the forefront of bringing workspace and meeting space aggregation to corporate America via meeting planners and corporate travel vs the path of occupier services or real estate teams like other workspace aggregators typically target. As events, meetings and flex workspace continue to collide, having your network integrated into existing tools is proving to be a better and faster way for user adoption.
👉 Read this.
💸 Indie operator doubles revenue by implementing software #
Mike LaRosa shared a recent post by Coworking Whistler in a Facebook group about the near-immediate impact implementing coworking space management software had on their business.
In short, they achieved a 200% increase in short-term booking revenue within two months of implementing Proximity, transitioning from manual operations to automated systems. In 2025, there are still a number of indie operators forgoing implementing tech.. and evidently revenues.
👉 Read this.
📈 Coworking data.
🤝 Coworking market moves.
🇨🇦 More details on the $13.8M gov. coworking contract #
Ottawa Citizen shares more numbers on the $13.8m tender that LAUFT recently won to create coworking hubs for Canadian government employees in the National Capital Region.
Commenting on the 3-year contract Jullian Paquin, a spokesperson for Public Services and Procurement Canada, said “This is a trial contract to assess whether (third) party provided, full-service workplace solutions will form a part of the future suite of real property accommodation solutions for the Government of Canada”.
👉 Read this.
🏢 Co-Space announces fourth location #
William Stokes shared that Co-Space site No.4 will be launching in Q3 of 2025 in the heart of St Albans with 28,000 sq/ft of design-led office, coworking and meeting space, a short 19 mins from London Kings Cross, in Sept 2025.
👉 Read this.
🇬🇧 OG coworking chain files for administration #
Iconic London-based coworking company Second Home, founded in 2014 and backed by major investors including Index Ventures and Atomico, has filed for administration following years of financial struggles. Despite raising over £60m and achieving a £130m valuation in 2019, the company saw revenues drop from £9.8m to £6.6m between 2019-2021, with losses reaching £13m in 2021.
The company underwent a rescue deal in 2022 led by Silicon Valley billionaire Riaz Valani, but continued to face challenges, closing multiple locations in early 2024.
👉 Read this.
🇬🇧 x+why adds historic London townhouse to portfolio #
Rupert Dean shares that x+why is partnering with The Bedford Estates to transform Bloomsbury House, a restored Georgian property in central London, into premium office spaces. The location, opening in Spring 2025, will offer workspaces for teams of 6-70 people, featuring amenities like meeting rooms, breakout areas, and landscaped gardens.
Located near the British Museum and major transit stations, this development joins another recent x+why addition proving their continued expansion in providing upscale, purpose-driven workspace solutions in historic locations.
👉 Read this.
🇱🇻 Baltic operator taps property-backed bonds to expand #
Workland, a full-service office and coworking space operator, is launching a bond offering this week. The company plans to borrow €2.5M in several tranches. The first tranche of €1.5M will be with a term of two years and with an annual interest rate of 10.5%. Further tranches are planned for the year 2025, based on further capital needs.
The company plans to use the capital to develop new locations and enhance existing spaces, building on their current portfolio of 14 properties across Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.
👉 Read this.
🎙 Coworking conversations.
Annie Dean, head of Team Anywhere at Atlassian, chats with Dave Cairns from Kadence on her team’s take on different coworking space designs and how many of them are not made to meet the current hybrid work moment (and how Atlassian categorizes different space design for different work type needs).
Elliot Gold (co-founder at work.life) chats with Caleb Parker about the Workspace Intelligence Network, and why a number of UK multi-location operators are banding together, and sidestepping "unreliable data middlemen", to share anonymized data and benchmarks.
The fall edition of FlexWorld Series 2024 was a blast and provided a treasure trove of insights, the team at OfficeRnD generously shared the recordings from all 3 sessions ft observations and updates from Miro Miroslavov, Hector Kolonas, Ivan Guberkov, Daniela Mallarino, Tom Proctor, Crispin Piney, Liz Elam, Cat Johnson and Brandon DeCherico.
Cat Johnson, Reuben Lau (from Spacefully), and Taylor Mason (from Talemaker) join a new kind of TWIC Podcast episode to discuss marketing trends they believe every coworking space operator needs to know about (or at least think about) in 2025.
Charlotte Kirby, the Founder and CEO of The Village Hive Coworking sat down with Hilda Gan on the Rev Up Your Business podcast to discuss all things coworking and community.
