When Tech City News took to New York in August last year, the team was amazed by the dominance of coworking brand WeWork on the streets of the Big Apple.
The coworking chain that prides itself on the rich community it develops has 12 different locations in New York and show no sign of slowing down.
In late 2014, WeWork launched its first UK space, right in the heart of the South Bank. With a second location in Soho quickly approaching on the horizon, I caught up with cofounder and CEO Adam Neumann about what the company hopes to do next in Europe.
What sets WeWork apart from other co-working spaces?
What we provide is a complete platform for creators, office space is just one aspect of that. Our mission is to help our members make a life, not a living.
We are dedicated to the success of our members in a way that most others simply aren’t. Rather than just offering work space and occasional events, our approach is holistic.
We’re trying to find new ways of empowering our members every day and we want to be able to really make a difference to someone who is focusing all of their energy on building a business. Community is at the heart of that.
Your spaces are famed for their consistency – is it a case of one size fits all for start-ups?
There are number of benefits for start-ups in operating as part of a wider coworking business community.
A recent study by the Harvard Business Review reported an 80 per cent increase in the size of business networks for companies operating within a coworking platform. This is true of the WeWork network, and we actively promote networking and inclusiveness.
That is why we have a dedicated app which allows our 16,000 strong community of creators across 25 locations to connect, communicate, share expertise and support and grow their businesses from anywhere in the world. This has tangible benefits, underlined by the fact that 60% of our members have done business directly with each other.
We’re always trying to find new ways of empowering our members by addressing their individual needs. We handle all of the key aspects of business development for our members, including access to health care, IT support, payroll and legal services.
Why is WeWork investing heavily in London?
London is a global leader in culture and commerce that strongly supports its entrepreneurial community and is the perfect fit for WeWork’s international expansion.
London is very similar to New York in that it has a strong small business infrastructure and creative class. But a high demand for space has emerged as the city’s independent workforce has grown.
Is outside of London relevant for you?
The UK is a key market for us in terms of our international expansion plans, and we know there are certainly other cities here that have strong entrepreneurial communities such as Bristol and Brighton.
However, our current focus is on growing our presence in London with the opening of our second building in Soho in February. We want to ensure we establish a strong, thriving London community before we look elsewhere.
What do you think some other coworking spaces do wrong?
Other coworking spaces tend to be just that – spaces. Without having a focus on creating a strong culture and community, what you are left with is an office space that is impersonal, and could be anywhere.
That suits some people, but what we’ve found is that the growing generation of Millennials in the workforce are looking for something more and are committed to working and living in a new way.