Reshaping Indian Workplaces
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Co-Working Reshaping Indian Workplaces June 2019 Preface The global financial crisis made it mandatory for corporates to Demands from millennials for vibrant, flexible, bring in efficiencies in space management. The important trends technologically advanced yet cost effective work that impacted the corporate world were Capex and a thriving start- environments led to the co-working revolution in recent The Co-Working Story in Numbers up ecosystem. Moreover, the growing demand from freelancers, times. Today, co-working is moving beyond meeting consultants and corporates led to co-working spaces growing like the needs of millennials in start-up spaces, to creating never before. Supplemented by the needs and wants of the new new work environments for mainstream corporates. It now provides multiple options of customized spaces to generation, the budding popularity of such spaces is expected to Space take-up established firms and plays a key role in corporate real Cumulative space only increase further. by the co-working estate strategy. take-up by co- segment has doubled Co-working spaces, today, are not confined to small businesses working segment Co-working operators have seized the opportunity to in or start-ups. Even large corporates are gung-ho about the concept 3.9 mn sq. ft. from 2017 to 1Q19 is to offer medium and large-scale corporates flexible 2018 compared and occupy a significant share of the pie. The flexibility intertwined 6.9 mn sq. ft. workspaces with uber-cool facilities at economical with 2017. with superlative amenities and a community driven ecosystem are rates. Demand from corporates, start-ups and attracting occupiers to co-working spaces. entrepreneurs has resulted in a huge jump in the co- The average Chennai was the In fact, co-working space is rapidly emerging as a vital player in the working share in total office leasing which increased size of transactions in the frontrunner in percentage commercial real estate sector of India. According to the estimates, from 5% in 2017 to 8% in 2018. In 1Q 2019, it increased co-working segment increase in co-working space there are approximately 325 to 330 co-working operators in the top further to 12% and we expect the trend to only move increased from 37,000 sq. leased between 2017 and upwards. seven cities in India. Some of the major players dominating this ft. (2017) to 52,000 sq. 2018. Its share in total office space include WeWork, Awfis Space Solutions, The Hive, CoWrks etc. With the growing importance of this segment in ft. (2018) to 77,000 sq. leasing in the co-working office markets, we thought it was pertinent to review ft. (1Q19). sector increased five times The average size of transactions in the co-working segment the key trends in this sector. This report presents a from 2% in 2017 to increased from 52,000 sq. ft. (2018) to 77,000 sq. ft. (1Q2019). The The co-working holistic picture of emerging business models, spatial In 2018, Mumbai 10% in 2018. cumulative space take-up by co-working segment from 2017 to share in office leasing in distribution of operators and the volume of investments the top seven cities of India had the highest 1Q2019 is 6.9 mn sq. ft. While Mumbai had the highest proportion finding their way to the sector. Operators are providing proportion (14%) increased from 5% (2017) (14%) of co-working space to total office leasing in 2018, Chennai multiple options to occupiers ranging from entire of co-working to 8% (2018) and this emerged as a frontrunner in the percentage increase in co-working buildings dedicated to co-working spaces to co-working space to total moved up further to space leased between 2017 and 2018. Its share in total office leasing offices within conventional work environments. They office leasing. 12% in 1Q2019. in the co-working segment increased 5 times from 2% in 2017 to are now also offering built-to-suit co-working spaces. 10% in 2018. Managed Offices is a new trend gaining popularity in co- working as large developers are establishing separate Today, millennials constitute a majority of India’s workforce. divisions or entities to handle the co-working business. They are adaptive but expect a drastic change to occur in the way people work. Agile workplaces and a vibrant ambience helps the Apart from presenting key trends, the report showcases new workforce deliver better. While the concept has readily been some of the major leasing transactions in co-working, accepted in the metros, Tier II cities are also opening up to this explores the city-wise absorption of space in this asset class and throws light on some of the major Tier II cities new concept, including Indore, Ahmedabad, Bhubaneshwar, Kochi where co-working office spaces are growing. While the and Jaipur. market is currently at a nascent stage, we expect to This concept has brought relief to both employees and the witness an increase in operators and the spaces they employer. With cost reduction and shared amenities, an overall provide. A healthy mix of offerings viz. viable rentals, sustainable working ecosystem seems to have been created. This superior infrastructure, technologically advanced trend is expected to continue and provide new opportunities tto facilities and amenities along with proximity to work will developers. Data security and privacy are a few concerns the industry soon become the order of the day. needs to address to make co-working successful. We hope this report provides Co-working spaces are expected to redefine the operators, developers and occupiers with insights on co-working markets entire approach towards commercial property and bolsters the existing knowledge design and offer a brand new spectrum of base of occupiers and operators. opportunities for developers. Sanjay Dutt Ramesh Nair Chairman, FICCI Real Estate Committee and CEO & Country Head, India, JLL MD and CEO, Tata Realty and Infrastructure Ltd. [email protected] 1 Co-working: Reshaping Indian Workplaces Co-working: Reshaping Indian Workplaces 2 Introduction A steaming cup of coffee in hand, seated Factors such as technological innovation offices, which will stand apart from on a reclining chair, favourite music and digital transformation have further conventional workspaces. For tenants plugged to the ears, a skype meeting fuelled this trend. Unlike the traditional this means even greater options to with a colleague, multiple data files business centres, co-working offices offer choose from when taking up space and open on the laptop and work is being unique amenities such as a gymnasium, for commercial real estate markets, it done for the day… spa, a food court, gaming zones, sleeping propels the evolution of workspace as a pods, crèche service etc. These attributes service. This is a scene from the life of a young have helped popularize co-working software engineer working in a typical Growth has been witnessed in the spaces among employees, entrepreneurs co-working office space. Co-working, number of operators as well as the and corporates alike. the new age way of working, is the flexible space take-up in top seven cities biggest disruptor of the way people Over the last few years, co-working of India. The stock of flexible office space live, work and play in India today. It spaces have gained popularity not only is expected to grow in 2019 as operators has transformed the way businesses with start-ups and SMEs but with large are expanding to newer markets and function allowing for the emergence of corporates as well. An analysis of leasing scaling up to match the changing needs new commercial tenancy models and trends in the top seven cities in India, of the occupiers. a recalibration of financial and human clearly reflects the rising proportion of As the concept is gaining popularity, capital. More importantly, it has created mainstream corporates and established we witness the emergence of different a conducive ecosystem for the growth of entities from different sectors in the total business models. Joint ventures or start-ups and proliferation of small and co-working space leased. management contracts between property medium enterprises (SMEs). The segment is evolving rapidly in India owners and flexible space operators are Co-working provides increased and the last two years have seen strong coming up. Some real estate developers mobility and flexibility of scaling up or demand drivers and healthy supply push are also creating their own flexible space downsizing office space. Apart from this, provided by the aggressive expansion of offerings. By doing so, they are adding it provides a platform for the evolution co-working operators. Flexibility, plug- value to their buildings and offering a of a ‘community’ concept. It allows and-play simplicity, the need to introduce diverse portfolio of core and flex spaces to like-minded individuals to connect with innovation and a sense of community meet changing needs of the occupiers. each other in a professional setting. for employees are sparking corporate In the light of these interesting trends, we While business centres have always interest in flexible space solutions. For aim to capture through this paper, the been a part of the commercial real property owners providing this supply of demand drivers of the co-working space estate offering, the rapid rise in start-ups flexible space is becoming an attractive in India and our views on the potential of led to the need for collaborative spaces. option enabling the creation of vibrant this sector going forward. 3 Co-working: Reshaping Indian Workplaces Co-working: Reshaping Indian Workplaces 4 Co-working segment act as a catalyst for modern workspaces in India The co-working segment has seen amenities and community driven ecosystem impressive growth in recent years are some of the benefits that are attracting and is acting as a catalyst for modern office space occupiers to co-working centres.