Has Coworking Transformed The Office Market?

On the second day of Expo Real, a real estate and investment fair in Munich, experts from various industries discussed the future of coworking and whether the sector has changed the office market, or if corporates changed coworking.

Biotech company Roche currently has 6,000 employees that work out of the firm’s Penzberg site in Germany. Although it has a diverse portfolio of production, laboratory and logistic buildings, it has yet to expand into the coworking industry.

Chemical company BASF also owns a varied portfolio, including coworking spaces in locations where they are in startup mode. 

[bctt tweet=”Amol Sarva, CEO of flexible workspace operator Knotel, said that flexibility should be at the core of any business, especially during uncertain economic times. ” username=”allwork_space”]

“A few years ago, people were wondering if coworking was even worthwhile. It certainly is worthwhile,” said Sarva. “It is a useful and creative thing. And then corporates decided they loved that they don’t have to make a long-term commitment and they can change everything. It’s so fascinating that we still talk about coworking. Probably next year at Expo there will not be a panel on coworking. The term coworking is being absorbed into a broader concept. Flexible office is the way things will work.”