Westfield signs Venture X for co-working space

Flexible office operator Venture X has signed a long-term lease agreement for a new site at Westfield London. The 19,000 sq ft co-working facility will be in offices formerly occupied by Westfield employees at 1 Ariel Way, W12. It will be the second co-working space in London launched by Venture X, after the United Franchise Group-owned brand opened a venue in Chiswick, W4. Last year, EG revealed that the former House of Fraser site at Westfield was to be converted into serviced offices, while IWG is also planning to roll out a retail-to-offices product this year. Andrew Ross, chief executive of Venture X UK & Ireland, said the UK was in the middle of a “workplace revolution”. He said: “The pandemic in many ways has been disastrous, but it has also highlighted the importance of flexible working and co-working spaces.” The new plug-and-play space will include podcasting rooms, hybrid meeting rooms for video calls, private offices, hotdesking space and shared entertaining spaces. The operator is marketing the site to local entrepreneurs and small businesses as well as corporates. Scott Parsons, chief operating officer for Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield in the UK, said: “Since opening in 2008, Westfield London has been a key partner of the local community and a catalyst in the transformation of White City and Shepherd’s Bush into a world-class place to shop, live and work.” Venture X operates around 1m sq ft of space across 45 locations in five countries. It is hoping to double that in the next two years. Chris Lewis, head of agency at Devono Cresa, said: “This latest commitment by Venture X is a massive vote of confidence in offices and represents an exciting moment for the White City real estate market. “As momentum continues to build for the return to the office, the provision of high quality, best-in-class space has never been more important.” To send feedback, e-mail alex.daniel@eg.co.uk or tweet @alexmdaniel or @EGPropertyNews Photo: Ben Cawthra/Shutterstock