Industrious eyes ‘higher-end’ WeWork sites
Co-working company Industrious has joined the list of flexible office providers looking to take on sites ditched by WeWork in the latter’s bankruptcy.
WeWork filed for Chapter 11 protection in the US earlier this week and has already mapped out some 70 locations in which it plans to walk away from leases.
In a social media post, Industrious chief executive and co-founder Jamie Hodari said his company was “likely” to take on some of the properties WeWork exits as it looks to lessen its lease obligations.
Co-working company Industrious has joined the list of flexible office providers looking to take on sites ditched by WeWork in the latter’s bankruptcy.
WeWork filed for Chapter 11 protection in the US earlier this week and has already mapped out some 70 locations in which it plans to walk away from leases.
In a social media post, Industrious chief executive and co-founder Jamie Hodari said his company was “likely” to take on some of the properties WeWork exits as it looks to lessen its lease obligations.
“There will likely be many closures to get to their target liability reduction,” Hodari said. “Most shuttered WeWorks will get taken over by a competitor, they won’t sit dark. Even Industrious will likely take over a few of the higher-end ones. And for units that truly shut down forever, customers will hopefully quickly find a new home.”
Rivals have been running the rule over WeWork sites since the company said in August that there was “substantial doubt” that it could remain in business. Several industry figures speaking with EG said Industrious would probably want to take on some buildings.
Hodari said the space that changes hands would depend on which WeWork landlords agree to renegotiate their leases. The company is currently negotiating 400 leases globally, WeWork chief executive David Tolley has said.
Hodari added: “There’s a lot of history and scar tissue there, so some landlords will take the recut deals, but others will refuse and will choose to take it as an opportunity for a clean break and a chance to see if they get different performance with a different operator.”
The Industrious CEO said he was “optimistic about how this is playing out”.
“The truth is, this is the period of highest demand for flex that we have ever seen, and nearly every trend in modern work is accelerating that demand,” Hodari added. “I hope the bankruptcy will put most of WeWork’s troubles in the rearview mirror and put the focus squarely on that future.”
Established a decade ago, Industrious sold a 40% stake in its business to CBRE in 2021 and, as part of the deal, Industrious took on Hana, CBRE’s own flexible office arm.
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Photo from WeWork
