Demand for coastal workspace in South Africa soars as employees take advantage of greater flexibility to live in desirable seaside locations

26 August 2025: New data by International Workplace Group (IWG), the world’s largest operator of flexible workspace, has revealed soaring demand for office and co-working space by the coast, as employees take advantage of increased flexibility to work in seaside locations.

To meet this rising demand for localised working, IWG has significantly grown its network with four new signings in the Cape and KZN over the past year alone. Major new coastal openings include Milnerton, Knysna, Somerset West and Durban.

The widespread adoption of flexible working has allowed many workers to relocate to more rural locations as they are no longer bound by long, daily commutes.

Research by IWG among workers who have moved to coastal locations demonstrates the importance of flexibility to their new working lives. More than three-quarters (78%) said they would look for a new job if they were required to travel long distances to a city centre office five days a week, while three in five (63%) said they had already moved to more flexible roles to maintain their coastal lifestyles.

Additionally, 90% of workers living by the coast say they are more productive working in a hybrid model, with 69% regularly using flexible workspaces.

The research also found that since moving to a coastal town, these hybrid workers have reported a better quality of life (75%), a healthier lifestyle (68%) and improved work-life balance (67%). ​

Mark Dixon, CEO of International Workplace Group, commented: “Coastal towns are some of the most desirable places to live in South Africa, but were previously out of reach for many workers unwilling to put up with long and expensive daily commutes to far-away city centres. Now, the emergence of greater workplace flexibility with a large number of companies enabling their people to work closer to home means that more people are able to live and work in these sought-after communities.

“At IWG, we’re seeing strong growth in demand for flexible workspaces in coastal and regional locations. Our network continues to expand to support businesses looking to drive productivity, reduce costs, and enable their teams to work where they are most effective.”

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About International Workplace Group PLC

International Workplace Group is the global leader in hybrid work solutions and workspace brands. We create personal, financial, and strategic value for businesses of every size. From some of the most exciting companies and well-known organizations on the planet, to individuals and the next generation of industry leaders. All of them harness the power of International Workplace Group’s hybrid working platform to increase their productivity, efficiency, agility, and market proximity.

International Workplace Group’s unrivalled network coverage includes approximately 4,000 locations across more than 120 countries and 83% of Fortune 500 companies are amongst our growing customer base.

Through our brands including Regus, Spaces, HQ and Signature, we help millions of people and their businesses to work more productively. We do so by providing the world’s leading hybrid work platform with professional, inspiring and collaborative workspaces and digital services all available via the International Workplace Group’s app.

For more information

Visit www.iwgplc.com and for more information on partnering with International Workplace Group, see: https://www.iwgplc.com/develop-a-location