Coworking Europe Podcast

Mindspace is one of the biggest coworking operator in Europe, with dozens of locations spread across Germany, The Netherlands, the UK, Poland, Romania or Israel. It is also one of the few pure international brand. Yotam Aroy is the co-founder of Mindspace. during this conversation with Tom Sleigh, from Colliers, Yotam will go through many of the steps that led to transform Mindspace into the coworking giant it is today.

Recording of the panel held in Sofia on November 2024, at the Coworking Europe 2024 conference, entitled "What hospitality industries can teach coworking and how can coworking become part of the family?" Coworking is about people and care, not just about the facility. Hotels and restaurants have centuries of experience in hosting, and coworking operators are increasingly seeking staff with hospitality experience. Why is this, and what can coworking learn from the hospitality industry? What does hospitality truly mean, and how can it be applied to the workspace environment? What does a smile represent? How can we cultivate behaviors focused on personal service and care? How do we anticipate the needs of our clients? When recruiting, how can we identify the right skills? What level of service is appropriate to match the promised value for money? This panel, composed of experienced professionals who have worked in both hospitality and coworking, will help us explore the similarities and key insights that can transform flexible workspaces into places of genuine experience and personal satisfaction. Panelists : Patrick Aström (Helio Coworking), Kristelina Staykova (Entract127), Maria Piovano (The Social Hub), Elena Monserrate (Uncommon)

Coworking spaces in France are proliferating rapidly, particularly in regions with dynamic real estate markets characterized by high transaction volumes and a robust infrastructure of real estate services. This trend is extensively analyzed in the "8ème édition du Baromètre Arthur Loyd," which reveals that areas like Gironde, Rhône, and Bouches-du-Rhône are hotspots for coworking growth due to their mature tertiary real estate markets. These regions benefit from the presence of a diverse professional community and high levels of commercial real estate activities, which provide the necessary environment for coworking spaces to thrive. The demand for these flexible workspaces is increasingly driven by companies and employees seeking adaptable work arrangements, highlighting a shift towards more dynamic work environments that cater to both individual and corporate needs. In metropolitan areas where demand for office space is high, coworking spaces offer a practical solution by providing flexible leasing terms and a community environment that appeals to modern workers and companies.

This AI generated podcast summarize the Study “Längerfristige Auswirkungen von New Work auf die Mobilität der Menschen in Bayern”, published via the Bavarian Business Association at vbw-bayern.de and in PDF format. The findings suggest a cautious approach among Bavarian businesses when it comes to integrating coworking into formal hybrid work policies. This hesitancy contrasts with trends in other European markets, where coworking is increasingly being recognized as a bridge between office and remote work — especially in secondary cities or for decentralized teams. It also emphasize on the fact that despite the rise of hybrid work, coworking remains a fringe option among Bavarian companies, with only 3% offering access to coworking spaces as part of their flexible work policies.

Coworking is a hospitality business where human service and interaction remain a key part of the value provided to the member How to determine the perfect job description in 2023? – What are the functions to be covered? – Is multi-tasking the golden criterion to emphasize or should one move away from it? – What are the soft skills that should be given the highest priority in 2023? How to deal with the departure of key people to whom the community is attached and who embodies the space culture? – Should hospitality and sales responsibilities be assigned to the same individuals? If not, why and how to deal with it? – Can one remotely manage coworking operations? – In what ways can coworking operators attract and retain talent? – How are operators implementing internal mobility programs to enhance the skills of their teams? – Is part-time employment a viable option? Is it advisable to hire talent from within the local communities? All those questions and more will be addressed by best-in-class operators who will share their experience and tips. Naiara Chaler (Attico) Benjamin Nick (Unicorn), Alexandra Livesey (Clockwise), Jamie Apostolou (Second Home). Moderated by Suzanne Murdock, Co-Founder The Hub Newry

A focus on how to create a successfully merged entity looking at strategies, best practices, and considerations for successfully merging between coworking operators, including navigating cultural differences, operational integration, member retention, branding, legal and financial considerations, leadership, and lessons learned. Recorded at Coworking Europe 2023, in Porto. Joao Simoes (IDEA Spaces), Thom Wernke (StartDock).

To what extent is the community manager and the hospital vibe the best asset of a coworking space? – What are the most effective tips and tricks to create a socially engaging environment within a coworking space? – How to determine the right set of values? – How can one encourage meaningful connections and interactions among members to foster a sense of belonging and shared purpose? – Are there specific activities or initiatives that have been successful in promoting a vibrant and inclusive community within coworking spaces? – How to balance the need for social interaction with the varying preferences and work styles of different members within coworking spaces? – How can community managers ensure that information flows smoothly and that members are well-informed about events, opportunities, and initiatives? – Do you actively involve members in shaping the coworking community and fostering a sense of ownership and empowerment? – How do you teach your team to address conflicts or challenges that may arise within the community, while maintaining a positive and supportive environment? – How do you assess the success of your community managers' efforts in creating a socially enabling environment and fostering a sense of common purpose? – What metrics or indicators can be used to evaluate the strength of the community and the level of member engagement? – How can technology and digital platforms be effectively leveraged by community managers to enhance community engagement and communication? Cecilia Berglund (Baltigruppen), Nikolay Bonev (Campus X), Robert Beddries (Betahaus Hamburg), Maria Svensson Wiklander (Gomoronn). Moderated by Claire Carpenter, Founder of Creatingconnections.org

Shared revenues, profit sharing, co-financing, management agreements, franchising… Many legal asset-light options exist nowadays to lower the financial risk and build partnerships with landlords. Partnerships with landlords can speed up coworking brand's expansion while it can also be a very effective way for Real Estate operators to enter the world of flexible services, making their facilities more appealing to future tenants. During this panel discussion, participants will share their experience with implementing the different models, underlining the advantages from the Property owners' perspective. – What are the main differences between the different models? – Why sign up with a coworking franchise brand rather than sign up for a profit-sharing agreement? – How to assess the proper added value of flexible services and amenities in a building? – What share of the total revenue generation can or should it represent, as opposed to traditional leasing revenues? – How can the right balance be found between short-term gains and long-term costs? – What are some common legal pitfalls to be aware of, and how can they be mitigated? – How can operators effectively communicate the value and benefits of coworking spaces to conservative landlords who may have limited familiarity with the concept? – What level of guarantee should be reached to initiate a productive discussion with a conservative landlord? – How can coworking operators proactively address potential challenges or conflicts that may arise during the lease agreement, ensuring a smooth and successful partnership with the landlord? This conversation will focus on the practices and arguments that maximize the chances of reaching a mutually beneficial agreement between a landlord and an operator. John Milhado (Office Improvers), Ian Chitsungo (VentureX), Romain Mefret (Bureaux&Co), Ashok Balabhaskarane (Wojo). Moderated by Emma Swinnerton, Head of Flexible Workspace EMEA at Cushman & Wakefield. Recorded at the Coworking Europe 2023 conference, in Porto.

Portugal has become a magnet for digital nomads who more and more consider long stays in the country to enjoy the Portuguese lifestyle. This growing population of international workers needs to integrate into the local economy. What are the best practices and best approaches to do so seen by Portugal experts and practitioners? The conversation will be the opportunity to go through it addressing all the benefits and challenges. Here are some questions the participants will be asked: What initiatives can coworking spaces implement to help integrate remote and hybrid workers into local communities? Should coworking spaces actively communicate about the net economic benefits that international workers bring, or should this remain a task for the authorities? How important the positive economic impact can be for the local economy? Could it bring international new opportunities for Portugal workers, SMEs, and startups? Can coworking spaces provide safe spaces for skilled refugees seeking to join the workforce? What role do language support and communication play in facilitating the integration of foreign digital nomads? How can coworking spaces measure the success of their efforts in integrating foreign digital nomads? The rise of remote work and hybrid work models has enabled workers to break free from the constraints of location and work from anywhere. However, as the number of remote workers continues to increase, new challenges have emerged. Gonçalo Hall (Digital Nomad Association Portugal), Ines Petiz (Synergy Cowork), Debora Nabais (Second Home) Moderated by Julianne Becker, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Coconat Recorded at the Coworking Europe 2023 conference, Porto (November 2023)

Recorded in Porto, at the Coworking Europe 2023 Conference, on November 29th. A testimonial on the challenges and triumphs of managing and growing a coworking business in war-torn Ukraine. With : - Ilia Keniigshtein (Creative States, Ukraine). - Anastasiia Gavrilova, Board member of the Ukrainian Coworking Association - Team Lead Ukrainian chain NAT COWORKING - Anastasiia Kachan, co-founder and Supervisory Board Member, Ukrainian Coworking Association. - Vika Zhurbas, Ukrainian Coworking Association The Keynote file can be downloaded on https://socialworkplaces.com/product/coworking-in-ukraine-2023-cwe23/

This session is a panel recorded on December 2nd, 2021, during the virtual Coworking Europe Conference. Title : "Updating the coworking community concept ? - How to create human chemistry, senses of sharing, belonging and the right contacts friendly environment" Community has long be said to be at the core of the coworking experience. Feeling part of a community come though through weak or strong links. Create the right atmosphere to sparks human contract is more an art than a science. What are the tricks and tips ? How to develop the right storyline to which members feel connected ? How to install a feeling of being surrounded with peers with whom it's good to have fun and/or fruitful business conversations ? Participants : Zsofi Toth (Puzl Coworking, Budapest) Suely Figueiredo (Talent Garden, Vienna) Michala Hrnčiarová (Coworking Cvernovka, Bratislava) Vika Zhurbas (Coworking Ukraine, Kiev) Moderated by Candela Fonte, Salto

We are seeing more spaces in shopping centres. And shopping centres owners are more and more looking to integrate coworking spaces within their walls, while they look for more diversification, as e-commerce takes an ever greater share from the traditional retail sector. Why? How? How much? What are the challenges? In this discussion, we will look for the perspectives of both the Shopping Centres' owners and the coworking operators. With Tom Whittington (Director of Retail & Leisure Research at Savills), Caroline Meeder (Head of Department Office and Residential Management ECE), Clément Goutagny (Head of Innovation & Business Development at Mercialys)

Keynote - Latests data and trends on the Coworking Industry in Europe, by James Rankin (Instant group). Presentation given on December 1st, at the Coworking Europe 2021 Virtual gathering.

Panel - Bigger players, international operators, new providers profiles coming from other industries are entering the coworking playground. Have independent operators, active locally for some years, have an advantage? As the coworking demand is growing, is the tide rising all ships, bog or small? Or are there specific strategies and approaches to be put in place in order to create specificities? Is the future for independent spaces local boutique offering and an even stronger effort to build community identities? Or can independent operators be as ambitious and anyone, locally or nationally? The panel is supported by LiquidSpace. https://liquidspace.com/ With Manuel Zea (Coworking Spain, Madrid), Stefan Yazzie Herbert (House of Bandits, Vienna), Claire Carpenter (The Melting Pot, Endiburgh), Ricki Dorman (LiquidSpace, San Francisco).

Companies are rapidly embracing hybrid working models and reconsidering the office capacities they need. A growing number of them are turning to flex workspace operator to propose flexible solutions letting them optimize the management of square meters while proposing more activity based workplace solutions and comfort. The session was produced during Coworking Europe 2021 Virtual on Dec 2, 2021, and is supported by Upflex. https://upflex.com/

How Flex Workspace and coworking access shall become a must in the toolbox of HR and recruitment managers at the time of the distributed workforce. No flex and human hospitality driven solution available, no or less appeal to attract future talents ? With : Adrian Bodis (Immofinanz / myhive) Michal Rudzinsky (108 Agency) Jakub Fekiac (Edgar Baker) Supported by https://myhive-offices.com From Bratislave, Slokavia, recorded on December 2nd, 2021, at Coworking Europe 2021 Virtual.

What corporate companies are already planning now and how operators should prepare for the increased demand for flex office solutions. By the Frankfurt based experts of AllOfficeCenters' co-founder Thomas Schulz. Presented at Coworking Europe 2021 Virtual, on Dec 1st.

Mark Gilbreath is the CEO of LiquidSpace, one of the largest real-time flexible office spaces network. LiquidSpace is a partner of Coworking Europe 2021 Virtual. Mark gave this fascinating presentation over the evolution and innovation within the coworking and flexible workspace market (Dec 2, 2021). The worl of work is re-inventing everywhere.

Gamedy Mbaye is the COO of Vibration Workshare, an independent coworking operator based in Fribourg, a 40.000 inhabitants town in between Lausanne and Bern, two major urban areas of Western Switzerland. The Swiss public transportation is worldwide famous for its punctuality and effectiveness. Hence, it makes a lot of sense to settle coworking spaces between bigger cities. A coworking member can meet a partner or customer anytime in one of the metros located closeby. Founded in 2017, Vibration has since then opened up three additional locations, in Neufchâtel and Vevey, two other towns at the crossroad of bigger urban areas. Gamedy Mbaye is confident for the future and plan to grow the network of spaces further as the awareness regarding the coworking services and alternatives to daily commute to big city centers related to a presence at the head office are better known in Switzerland, after the Covid pandemic.

GCUC is the most important network of conferences on coworking and GCUC is a sister conference of the Coworking Europe conference (edition 2021 to take place in Vienna, on Dec 1-2). Liz Elam has initiated GCUC almost 10 years ago and has built a huge insight regarding the development of the industry in the US and in the World. The GCUC North America conference 2021 is taking place in New York City on September 27-28-20. The event will be live streamed and Coworking Europe viewers can get a 30% discount using the code "EUROPE". https://na.gcuc.co This is the opportunity to discuss with Liz Elam about the hot topics of this year North America conference and what, according to her, will be some of the main drivers in the US coworking market in the (almost) post-pandemic era.

Officenter is one of the most important regional flexible office operators in Belgium. The company is opening up 7 new centres, to grow the network to 16 locations in total, thanks to the support of local investors. The model of regional flex offering proved to be valid. A discussion with Christa Joucke, Managing Director at Officenter.

MatchOffice just released its 2021 Survey covering the situation of the flex workspace industry in Europe. The Covid-19 crisis has had a dramatic impact on the operators, with some differences between countries. The future might though be very bright. Discussion with Olga Fomenko, Marketing Director at MatchOffice.

Sanna Ekström is the co-founder of MindPark, a coworking operator more than a decade active in the Southern part of Sweden. The company which started in 2008 as a simple café in the small city of Helsingor, on the shore opposing the Danish capital Copenhaguen, operates now 4 coworking locations and is one of the most visible brand in the region. The company has lately signed up with a major property developer to run a big slice of a new building to be constructed in the outskirt of Gothenburg, the second largest city in Sweden. More and more, the coworking company is asked by property owner to take in charge the management of the ground floor, the restaurant and café, if it is needed around the block and well as the reception, some facility management elements and more. The service is growing more and more complex, observe Sanna Ekström, although the coworking, hospitality and community management part is what remains the most important revenue generator for Mindpark, which has is attached to the usage of their brand. Those deal are more and more needed in regional areas, and not only in the main city centers.

Talent Garden is one of the most important international coworking brands in Europe. The Italy based company has locations in operations in Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Romania and Spain. The operators just announced the opening of a new facility in Lille. Davide Dattoli, Co-founder and CEO of Talent Garden, is among the most important figures of the international scene. A discussion with the energy behind TAG's expansion.

EDGE is a Holland based developer of smart building. Recently, the so called EDGE Building in Amsterdam was awarded the title of greenest and most efficient building in the world. As one hears a lot about landlords developing their own coworking brand, we see now real estate developers following the same way. EDGE has amplified its efforts to install cutting-edge technologies to make facilities greener and healthier. EDGE is also investing now in the hospitality service side, with EDGE Workspaces, the company's flexible workspace brand. After Amsterdam, EDGE Workspaces just opened up a new location in Berlin. We will discuss with Vivian Suhr about the international plans of EDGE and EDGE Workspaces.

Haz Memon is the founder of Swiss Escape a co-living and coworking company running operations in Switzerland and and in Crete. Haz is also involved in Co-Living Hub, an association of 250 Co-living operators across the world. The pandemic has had a huge impact on the demand, he says. Employers are now coming into the games. While we had mainly guests coming from international background, in Valais, where we operate a location, the proportion of Swiss Guests has jumped from 10 to 70% in the last year. The travel bans played a role, but not only. Now, companies are investigating how to implement remote working more systematically and temporary locations with co-living facilities are options among others. In Greece, things go even further. The government wants to become a permanent destination for remote workers. The Greek government is even exploring the opportunity to adjust the current law of residency to boost the demand of foreign workers aiming at working from the country for long duration. That could come through tax cuts, among other things.

Niclas Söör is the founder of DoSpace, a coworking operator born in Linköping, Sweden, in 2017, and which today operates 7 locations in 4 different cities. Despite being the 5th largest city in Sweden, Linking remains small by some standards, with 160.000 inhabitants. DoSpace has found is niche market in the area where demand is different than what one will have in bigger cities, such as Stockholm. "We have a lower audience of freelancers in the region", says Niclas Söör. This niche has a big potential, though. DoSpace just raised about 1 million € to fund its expansion. The company wants 30 locations by 2026. Despite the pandemic, the demand will rise, does he expect.

Nir Kelner is CEO of Brain Embassy, a coworking brand operating in Tel Aviv, Warsaw and Antwerp. Israel is the most Covid19 vaccinated country in the world. 90% of the capacity is now filled, explains Nir Kelner. The waiting list for hosting events is getting longer. We see new profile of prospect, with companies which gave up their office and now are putting their head office in coworking spaces. Hybrid working, between the home and the HQ, becomes a reality in a growing number of companies. And there is no more plexiglass and social distancing measures. We shake hands and give hugs again. Live is almost back to normal.

The purpose of the discussion is to have an overview of what are the possibilities to integrate more and more technologies into buildings to transform them into digitized service oriented assets. With years and years of experience in the flexible workspace industry, Essensys has seen the development of a growing number of technologies and enablers supported by new online services and tools.

Will we have tiny-coworking spaces soon like we have tiny houses ? It could be. Nooka has created "coworking" containers for just a few people, that are movable to any place. Could it open a whole new coworking segment in the market, answering some remote workers needs ? Discussion with the Sergiu Babasan, based in Cluj (Romania) manager at Nooka.

Claire Carpenter has been operating The Melting Pot in Edinburgh for many years. The Covid19 crisis forced her to shut down. Just a few months later, Claire is re-opening within a new location (better and nicer) showing how resilient independent coworking operators can be. A discussion about the practicalities of reboot, motivation and keeping the faith in the business that no pandemic can kill.

Eduardo Salsamendi is the president of ProWorkspaces, the Spanish association of flexible workspaces. Olga Fomenko is the Head of marketing for MatchOffice, one of the most important online booking platform for coworking spaces and meeting rooms in Europe. Both organisations released a report on the market data for the flex workspace industry, for Spain, in collaboration with Cushman & Wakefield, as well on an international level, from the user's perspective. The least one can say is that the drop in take-up and contract duration has been very steep. The coworking market seems to have been hit even harder than one might have thought. A conversation on the charts and forecasts with the publishers of both studies, available on https://socialworkplaces.com/knowledge-center/.

Ramy Boujawdeh is the managing director of Berytech, one of the biggest network of incubation services for entrepreneurs and coworking services in Lebanon. One of their three locations in Beyrouth was destroyed by the explosion of August 4, 2020. Hope is there, though, and they are developing the concept of "resilience innovation".

WeWork has been, and still is to some extend, the most global coworking champion. One of the most valued startup in the world, the breakneck expansion was not without damages. Based on more than two hundred interviews, this book chronicles the breakneck speed at which WeWork's CEO built and grew his company along with Neumann's relationship to a world of investors, including Masayoshi Son of Softbank, who fueled its chaotic expansion into everything from apartment buildings to elementary schools. Interview with Reeves Wiedeman, journalist at the New York Magazine and author of "Billion Dollard Loser", the epic story on WeWork.

Alisa Kapic is the VP Sales Northern Europe of IWG, the mother company supervising major Flex and Coworking brands in the world such as Regus, Spaces, Basepoint or Signature. Nowadays, with 3.400 locations around the world, IWG is by far the biggest provider of flexible workspace solution on the planet. It also was one of the first mover towards a multi-brands strategy in the field of coworking, in order to address the rising different segments one see surfacing in the market, from freelancers to corporates. Today, has one moves into the post-pandemic times, the work culture is embracing the models employees have experienced during the lockdownin a more sustainable way. And one of the main challenges to be addressed by employers is to provide workspace solutions for their workers located closer to their homes.

Inga Kayademir is the COO of Unicorn, one of Germany's most important coworking player, with 20 locations spread around Berlin, Munich, Cologne or Potsdam. The company is coming out of the Covid-19 crisis stronger. They manage to keep most of their members, raised money and kept their plans to open new locations. It's in Berlin that Unicorn is likely the most ambitious. "The capital is a very dynamic ecosystem and we work on opening locations in every district of the city. We will complete two new locations in the coming six months, making us the biggest coworking operator in the city by the number of spaces", explains Inga Kayademir. With 60 people on the payroll, Unicorn is putting in place a recruiting and training process where barista's, for instance, play an critical role to federate the communities of people within each spaces, and between locations.

Alessandro Nacci is the CEO of SOFIA Locks (technology partner of ISEO), an Italy based company developing IoT (Internet of things) related smart access solutions. They have been focusing a lot, lately, on the coworking industry as technology allows to flexibilize office and real estate assets. "Coworking and Coliving services is a very important area of development for modern access and wireless technologies", says Alessandra Nacci. The company works closely with ISEO, one of the most important key and locking systems producers in Europe, with more than 50 years experience. Sofia develops the software part and relies on ISEO's hardware to integrate the whole solution. "Our solution is integrated with a management platform supporting the business operations and business intelligence needs of the operators", adds Alessandro Nacci. "We can for instance support dynamic pricing for room bookings." The Italian coworking giant Talent Garden is among Sofia Locks' important customers.

Joao Simoes is the co-founder of Idea Spaces, a Lisbon based coworking operator which started its activities in 2014 within a 400 m2 big space. Six years later, Idea Spaces is soon to open a third location, cumulating a total of 10.000 m2 surface under coworking management. "The strategy initiated in the early 2010's to make Lisbon a magnet for tech and foreign talents clearly delivered. The quality of life, the cost of living, the culture, food, climate has transformed Portugal into a great place to gather teams for international scaling up tech companies looking for talents. It's easier for a Finnish startup to open a brand in Portugal to lure qualified foreign developers or marketing experts than to make them move to Helsinki. And from that perspective, coworking spaces like ours is perfect, as it brings the team directly into the local community and ecosystem, while allowing them to scale up rapidly"; explains Joao Simoes, for whom the work on the community and networking is critical.

Viesturs Sosars is the co-founder of TechHub Riga. The tech coworking and incubator was launched eight years ago and since then played a major role structuring the Latvian tech and startup ecosystem and connecting it with the international tech scene. Named after TechHub London, one of the UK pioneer in the early 2010's, which has been among the most important players who supported the rise of the Silicon Roundabout in London, TechHub Riga has not been proportionally less important for the Baltic country tech scene. TechHub London - which had been co-founded by Mike Butcher, from TechCrunch - announced the closure of the space, in august 2020, due to the Covid19 pandemic impact on their activities and revenues. TechHub Riga, though, incorporated as a non for profit organization, will though keep going and keep the franchise alive, along with their peers of TechHub Bucharest. "We have projects. If things goes right, we will move to a 9.000 m2 building historically owned by a university in Riga. We have the network and the international brand recognition", says Viesturs Sosars.

Francisco Vazquez is the Founder and President of 3G Office, a major Madrid based architecture firm operating in close to 50 countries, including Spain, Portugal and most of the Latin American countries. 3G Office designs corporate offices for big companies such as KPMG, Orange or Google. The last couple of years, coworking and flex workplace grew so much in 3G Office's portofolio that it now represent 30% of its activities. "It could grow up to 50% within the coming years, and the Covid-19 will accelerate a wave of transformation never seen so far in the workplace industry", explains Francisco Vazquez.

Daithi de Buitleir is the Chief Marketing Officer of Park Office, a Dublin based startup which optimizes the management of parking lots for companies and landlord. The service is a natural extension of what happens with hot desking management within flexible workplaces and coworking spaces. "Flexibility becomes the norm, especially in the post-Covid19 crisis", does he say. Park Office allows, a.o., to pool parking lots from different owners within a same neighborhood. "We optimize infrastructure and costs management". In line with coworking and other sharing economy related innovative new services.

Henrik Saxborn is the CEO of Castellum, the second biggest commercial real estate company in Sweden. The Swedish company manages an assets portfolio of more than 600 properties, mainly in commercial real estate, representing a total value of more than 9 bn €. One year ago Castellum took over UnitedSpaces, one of the most famous coworking operators in Sweden, which is active in five cities and operates a total of 6.600 sqm of coworking spaces. We discussed the reasons for this acquisition and his take on the evolution of coworking/office from the perspective of a major property management company.

Michala Hrnčiarová is the founder of Coworking Cvernovka, a small coworking space located in the suburb of Bratislava, Slovakia, which also offers childcare services. In february 2020, just before the Covid19 outbreak, Coworking Cvernovka had just opened up it's second location, in a shopping mall.

John Williams and James Rankin are respectively CMO and Head of Research of The Instant Group, a multi-services company focused on Flexible Workspaces and Coworking products. The Instant Group has a unique position to spot the latest trends in the coworking market on the EMEA level has well as on the international field. Conversation with two very knowledgeable gentlemen who know a lot about the coworking world internationally and where it is heading to post-Covid19. In addition, here are some of the figures observed by The Instant Group: -Demand for flexible workspace seems to have regained a lot of its momentum over the last month. 3-4 week ago most EU markets had similar levels of interest to Pre-Covid, over the last 1 to 2 weeks it appears to have slipped again. What has caused this: Caution around secondary spikes in Covid-19, increased information about the effects of remote working and therefore a longer but more insight based decision making process. -7 of their top 13 global markets are still seeing demand levels as high as those found pre-covid and really only Spain and the UK are significantly behind previous levels. -While interest or demand appears high there is still three more stages (enquiry, viewing, transaction/move in) before sales will happen, therefore it will take longer before transactions increase. -Coworking looks to have been the most impacted market during Covid-19, but was able to respond the quickest, probably due to the communities that these spaces created and the smaller occupier groups they attracted. Lots had already decided that working from home was not the right option for them. Due to this, TIG saw the average deal size of transactions increase across EMEA during Covid-19 to 8.3 workstations, a 22% increase on 2019 levels. -There is a lot of talk in the industry about the office being “dead” and news channels have picked up on this. The reality is that customers are not saying this but they are looking to change their long term strategy. All of the large corporates that TIG talked to indicated various levels of intent. -One of the big up and coming trends that everyone is talking about is the move to a hub and spoke model. Data shows not only is this already happening with demand for spaces in satellite towns and villages now consistently above that of the primary city, but the impact of Covid-19 to these markets was far lower. A good % actually didn't see demand levels drop during Covid-19, which is an indicator of the robust nature of these localised markets, even in tough economic climates. That being said, supply in those regions is often severely lacking. That is the next piece of research The Instant Group will be undertaking. - Pricing has been impacted on various levels. Although some providers say it is only due to one-time incentives being offered and therefore short term, data shows a sharp decline in rates across Europe with secondary cities and rural locations seeing the highest impact at the moment

Roksana Witusinski is the communication manager of the group Rent24, one of the biggest Europe based coworking operators. Founded in 2015 in Berlin, the company operates 70 locations on the continent and beyond like in Israel and in the US. Rent24 provides services to almost 35.000 members. Rent24 cultivates the idea of mixing freelancers, corporates and startups. The company has been growing rapidly thanks to organic and external growth and has partnerships with major corporations, such as the German insurance group Allianz. "It's important for us to keep the local team in place. They know the market, the people, the culture and vibe. So far, our takeover strategy has been very successful, we think", says Roksana Witusinski. Rather than to focusing only on the German home market, Rent24 chose to go for international expansion. They not only opened locations in smaller cities such as Bremen, but also plan to open a gigantic 9.500 m2 space in the western part of Berlin. The flexible workspace operator is feeling the wind of change in the workplace market and believes satellite working will become more and more popular, the same way they expect growing demand for smaller teams.

Christoph Hammer is Senior Vice President and Product Owner at ezeep, a cloud printing platform for coworking and flexible workspaces. ezeep stands for “easy printing“; the solution takes away the technical hassle of administrating network printers as well as tracking and charging printouts of coworking members. The company also cares about planting trees to offset the carbon footprint of coworking spaces' print jobs. Christoph Hammer witnessed how Covid-19 hit coworking spaces from the other side and shares some thoughts with us about how he envisions what's to come. Main takeaways: According to ezeep, on average, 30% of coworking spaces members print every given month. With cloud presence in hundreds of spaces around the globe, ezeep is very well positioned to see the slowing down and catching up processes of coworking spaces during the Covid19 crisis: “April was the low point. There was barely any printing activity. Maybe 20% of the normal. In May, the activity slowly started to come back. In June, we saw a 50% growth over the month. We are confident it will keep moving back to normal”, affirms Christoph Hammer. The story is the same almost everywhere. The exception would be South America, where the situation is still grim. In Asia the situation is very much depending on the country. The Philippines are so far doing worse than other Asian countries for instance. Some coworking spaces have opened their doors for other people in the neighbourhood to allow them to print out stuff while they had no printing capabilities – Like a local print shop. What does ezeep see as the upcoming next steps for coworking? “The signals are contradictory. According to some surveys, only 70% of coworking members will want to come back. On the other hand corporates are said to be looking more for flexible workspace options, fuelling new demand for coworking. Which of these trends will win? That's the big question”, says Christoph Hammer. Christoph thinks that we might be about to see a shift in the usual profile of coworking spaces users. The traditional freelancers or startups could become a minority as oppose to employees of middle or big companies: “Coworking with a community focus might be challenged “. ezeep sees new patterns people implement to keep in touch: “There are concepts we see now supporting the idea of virtual coworking. Having virtual lunches together for instance”. Business suites are not as much under pressure as open office plans. Meeting rooms seems to be booming as well: “People can't have meetings with customers in their kitchen”. Zoom rooms also are proving to be a huge success it seems. “Smaller meeting rooms, with good tech, this seems to be what people are looking for”. Christopher also expects a change in the financial risk sharing between coworking operators and tenants: “At the moment, coworking operators support all the risk. In the future, it might become important for companies to commit for a longer term, not for 10 years, but for 1 or 2 years instead of two months. This is a shift we could see”. As a member of the PropTech community, ezeep expects the move towards more space automation to continue. Remote virtual concierge could become a big thing in the industry, he believes.

Zsofi Toth is the "Navigator" at Puzl Coworking, a Bulgarian based coworking operator with a community of more than 600 members. She is also co-founder of the Budapest office. Puzl Coworking is working on the opening on new locations in Hungary and Romania with a model based on the reconversion of C Class Buildings and old factories into cool coworking communities with a focus on the digital industries. The company initially was a offering IT services and was looking for new offices. As it struggled to find a proper location, Puzl figured out to create its own environment taking the opportunity given by an old industrial compound inherited from the Communist time in Sofia. This C Class old concrete building, home of a sewing factory decades back, was chosen to put in place a new coworking concept. Five years later, the Puzl Coworking community host more than 600 members spread between two building, re-furbished and renovated. Puzl Coworking choose to position one the digital ecosystem in Bulgaria. Most of the individual, companies and startups are operating in the IT and digital worlds. Through that experience, Puzl managed to build an expertise in the revitalizing and repurposing of old-fashioned and old industrial C Class buildings. Puzl has it's own architectural studio in house. They design the interior, the kitchen, lounge area or even the furniture, explain Zsofi Toth, who also supervises the Puzl Coworking expansion in Hungary. "Puzl is now looking to grow in Hungary and Romania", says Zsofi Toth, who can't tell yet when the new locations will open, although finding appropriate C Class Building remains Puzl's touch and approach. The company is now also addressing bigger team needs and scale-ups. They recently signed up contract to host a 150+ big company. "For the last 2 years, corporates have been showing a more open mind to join and come into coworking spaces with strong community such as Puzl. The trend is there. A growing number are not in need of a premium office suite in a A class facility to accommodate their needs and some will be happy to engage with other style and players. They also look more and more for flexibility. This is clear", tells Zsofi Toth. "Coworking has been hit very quickly and hardly by the Covid-19 crisis. So there has been a need for us to innovate and diversify rapidly. Open offices for bigger teams is definitely something we have been accelerating the development of."

Paul Nellist is the EMEA Managing Director of Hana, the coworking service launched by CBRE, the world biggest Real Estate advising and brokerage company. Hana is today a fully owned subsidiary of CBRE with operation in the UK and the US. The company operates 10 locations in total, 6 in the US and 4 in the UK (London and soon Manchester). The company has plans to open further spaces in Amsterdam, Dublin, Madrid, Paris and Berlin. Hana is discussing partnership with Landlords interested in these different cities. The model is very much based on partnership management agreement with landlords, similar to what hotels are familiar with. Hana will build, operate, fill the spaces for the landlords. Hana is also able to provide capital to fit out the building. "That's the benefit of being part, with CBRE, of a Fortune 128 company. We have access to capital which builds trust also from the landlords perspective", explains Paul Nellist. Hana's products are split between three main offerings: 1. "Hana Team" provides suites and studios for companies up to 300 people, with a lobby, internal meeting rooms, and can brand it to the occupier tastes and wills. They can customize the design, for large teams. 2. "Hana Meet" is on demand meeting space and conference facilities. It can be a training room, a pitch room, a board room, etc. 3. "Hana Share" is a sort of sophisticated coworking, open space, allowing the occupier to leverage the use. It supports also the other offerings. "During a week, for instance, an occupier might have 100 seats, but on a Thursday, let say, they might be 120 and the 20 additional needed seats can be provided on a flexible base through Hana Share", says Paul Nellist. This is a membership additional service." "Team Suites" usually takes 70% of a overall Hana space. "Share" will represent 5-10%. Hana aims at providing exclusive service, like in a boutique of 5 stars hotels. Occupiers long term strategies are changing. They look for flexibility in the post Covid-19 crisis time. Remote working worked. An office is a place to work, but also collaborate and inspire. "We want to support that trend". CBRE is the world biggest Real Estate consultancy company. "We can leverage the whole CBRE ecosystem. This is a key benefit for us", thinks Paul Nellist. "We offer companies their own space and environment. A natural evolution is going, in terms of need for hospitality and flexibility. Lanlord will still do their traditional leasing, but will need also to be able to offer flexibility to their occupier. This is the overwhelming feedback we are getting from the many surveys we have had."

Jenny Schäpper is the co-founder of Village Office, a cooperative gathering 72 coworking spaces all over Switzerland. Village Office signed up a deal with the Swiss Railway company to make 80 railway station coworking enabled. They will work closely with local coworking operators to deliver this mission. The goal is to increase the coworking offering in the smaller town and remote areas. Coworking Switzerland also achieved to get the consensus from all political parties in Bern to support the opening up of a total of 100.000 coworking in the country, in the coming future. Public-private partnerships could be the way to follow, says Jenny Schäpper. The Swiss Federal government wants to embrace the new distributed working model and relocate jobs outside the big cities.

Frank Zorn is the co-founder of Deskeo, nowadays one of the biggest coworking operators in France, with 75.000 m2 under management, spread across 50 locations, mainly in the Paris and Lyon areas. Deskeo is the French arm of the US coworking giant Knotel, that recently invested in the company. Knotel policy, so far, was to keep building on the local brand. Ahoy!, the Berlin based operator taken over by Knotel in 2019 is operating under the Ahoy! brand as well. "Knotel had the same positioning as ours. We rapidly figured out there was a good fit between us. We have the same understanding and philosophy of what we want to build. So Knotel and Deskeo joined forces", tells Frank Zorn. In terms of market positioning, "we see a place between the demand of landlords to convert part of their business towards more flexible models and the companies requiring more flexible commitment for their workplace needs. We see we are well positioned to match the two sides of the demand.", says Frank Zorn. Deskeo focuses on the middle size and scaling up companies, as well as corporates. "Once a company grows higher than 10-20 people, they start to look for an environment where they can build their own culture, their own iconography within their location. We co-create an office that looks like their own office, bringing on top of it our service layer and flexibility." Frank Zorn is involved in the development of France, but not only. He also helps to develop the Knotel European offering elsewhere in Europe, in Amsterdam and Dublin, a.o. According to the country, the strategy will either be to keep the operations under as existing local brand - such as was the case with Deskeo (which benefits form a strong recognition in France)- or to develop directly and organically a new offering under the Knotel brand. "For contracts involving locations in different countries, with international customer, for instance, we commit as Knotel (...) We are a global brand, present in 70 cities." "We focus first on the most attractive and biggest markets, for the moment, but could look go for smaller cities, as a second steps." Frank Zorn says the company is also aware of the shift in culture that is brewing, in the post-Covid19 time. Employees and companies start to consider to distribute their workforce differently. Silicon Valley and some other places are losing some of their appeal, as people are thinking differently after the Covid-19 impact. "This is a shift that is going to take place", observes Frank Zorn. However, we expect the changes not to happen overnight. It will take a few years." Deskeo recently released the outcome of a Survey on how teleworking is accepted and perceived in France. "Work from home policy will become an asset for companies talent attraction, we see from the results", explains Frank Zorn. "Employees are also ready to give up their dedicated desks, would the workspace policy change and become more flexible, integrating home office. The head down tasks can be made at home. Brainstorming, collective creativity sessions, social stimulation rather take place within a workspace environment." "Proper Workspace design will become even more important in that new era", adds the CEO of Deskeo.

Jose Antonio Morales is the founder of a small Coworking Space located in the Slovenia countryside. No more than 14 people. Though, he made it financially sustainable. Five years later, things are going well. The model is different than the tradition commercial model big coworking brand operate in big metropoles. The Aurora model relies on a flexible cooperative approach, and could be replicated in any Europe rural area, says Jose Antonio Morales.