Coworking is booming, and the number of flexible office workspaces continues to grow. Not least in Bremen – which currently has twelve coworking spaces. Through its Dutch subsidiary Spaces, the International Workspace Group (IWG) has just created a further 3,000 square metres.
The new addition consists of a coworking area with its own barista-run coffee shop and flexible office space for rent. The new development in Bremen is a first for the Group. In our interview, Stefanie Lürken, the Spaces Country Manager, tells us why.
Ms Lürken, coworking is really taking off at the moment – what is causing the current boom in this particular way of working?
Lürken: There are three different aspects to this. The first is actually related to teleworking. Demand for working from home has dropped off a bit, as it turns out that employees start to feel lonely, and tend to get distracted at home. They also lose touch with head office and are less involved in their teams. But the people concerned often don’t want to return to faraway corporations with their rigid structures and closed office doors either.
So the problem was to work out the best way to integrate these talents. The solution is to create a working environment in a central location that offers attractive furniture, facilities, design and shared services – such as a business club or a coffee shop where people from different companies can meet up and exchange ideas – while also providing private spaces, such as separate offices.
