Report shows coworking is big business’ new flexible friend

A recent survey of coworking occupants makes surprising revelations that will dispel some of the common assumptions about this emerging and expanding segment of the property sector

Firstly, according to the report, The Human Face of Coworking, the majority of co-working users are female. “It’s not a huge majority, it’s 56% or 57% but it is interesting because if you ask co-working managers they assume that the majority of their clients are men,” said the report’s author Marta Moksa, MD, Coworking O4, Olivia Business Centre.

Another myth that the report disproves is that self-employed or freelance workers provide the backbone of demand. In fact, the number of such individuals that utilise co-working accommodation is in decline.

“Only about 15% of members are freelancers. Over 80% are small teams, or big teams, or team members,” Moksa told Real Asset Insight’s Richard Betts.

Moksa explained that although the survey was carried out in Poland and relates to Polish coworking centres, these were being compared in the context of the world wide coworking movement and the changes occurring there are applicable elsewhere.

‘Flexibility’ is another key attribute of coworking centres as far as occupants are concerned, she said.

“They just want to be sure that, whatever happens, they are not fixed in some kind of one-way street, they can get a few rooms more, or give rooms back and the flexible office is very much combined with their flexible businesses.”

Click on the video above to watch the full interview or listen to the podcast below.