Reports have revealed that Knotel has laid off up to a third of its New York office this week. Nearly 20 people were fired from the flexible office firm’s 22 West 38th location, which once had between 50 and 60 employees.
A spokesperson for the company confirmed that layoffs had happened, but that it was much less than a third of the New York office.
“Knotel has grown from two employees in one city to 500+ people in 17 cities over the past four years to become the leading global flexible workspace platform,” a statement from the company said. “Our business will continue to evolve and change to best meet the needs of our customers.”
Employees that were let go include sales representatives, customer service employees, a construction project manager and three workers that were part of the company’s furniture business, Geometry.
The company has experienced high vacancy rates and according to Crain’s, had 800,000 square feet of vacant space in New York toward the end of last year. Additionally, CNBC confirmed that the company’s leasing activity had dropped 80% in the fourth quarter of last year to 67,000 square feet.
This news comes just months after the company’s biggest competitor WeWork laid off hundreds of its employees.
“There was a lot of shade thrown on other businesses,” said a former Knotel employee said. “But it was the exact same business model.”
