WeWork’s HQ Service Offering Mimics Knotel’s Business Model

Published on August 14, 2018 - By Cecilia Amador

• WeWork recently launched HQ by WeWork
• The new service offering targets midsized companies
• HQ by WeWork closely mimics competitor Knotel’s business model

A few weeks ago WeWork launched “HQ by WeWork”, a new workplace solution for midsize companies.

In a blog post, Dave Fano, WeWork’s Chief Growth Officer wrote that the company felt that “while we have always attracted medium-sized businesses to WeWork, and count many of them as members, we felt there was more we could be doing for them. (…) we realized that many of them had unique demands, which required a more bespoke offer.”

This isn’t the first time WeWork tries to attract midsize companies as customers. Crain’s New York reported last year (2017) that WeWork had tried to poach clients from rival Knotel in New York. (Related reading: Wework Poaching Episode 3: The One Where They Go After A Coworking Space Owner)

Founded in 2015, Knotel “designs, builds, and operates custom spaces for established and growing brands, so they can be free to grow their businesses at will and build what’s never been built.”

HQ by WeWork seems to be a replica of what Knotel has been doing for the past two years in New York, San Francisco, London, and Berlin.

WeWork’s finances aren’t on the positive side; the coworking giant recently raised $1 billion in debt from SoftBank.  Just like Powered by We, HQ by WeWork is an effort by which the coworking giant hopes to make its business model more sustainable in the long-run. Experts have questioned WeWork’s ability to survive an economic downturn, especially considering it’s long-term lease commitments and the fact that most of its members are startups, entrepreneurs, and freelancers.  

With this latest venture, it seems like WeWork is distancing itself from coworking and morphing into a more traditional commercial real estate service offering company.