IWG adds 867 new partnership locations in 2023, as property owners and investor partners capitalise on rapidly growing demand for hybrid working solutions

- The trend of businesses moving towards hybrid working solutions is gaining momentum, with IWG approaching twice the number of new locations signed in 2023 compared to 2022

- This growth is fuelled by the rising demand for flexible workspaces and increasing adoption of the hub-and-spoke office model.

January 30, 2024 – IWG, the world's leading provider of hybrid work solutions, has announced that it has added 867 new locations to its network throughout 2023, almost doubling the number of new locations compared to the previous year.

An overwhelming 95% of these locations are being delivered via managed partnership agreements, delivering on IWG’s capital-light strategy. Towards the end of 2023, IWG reported its highest-ever revenue in its over 30-year history, with group revenue increasing in Q3 by 8% to £830m.

The rapid growth in new locations is being driven by property owners and partners seeking to capitalise on the rapidly growing demand for hybrid working. Many of these property owners have vacant space to fill with the decline in demand for traditional office real estate and are choosing to partner with IWG’s industry-leading hybrid working platform and benefit from a choice of multiple brands including Regus, Spaces, HQ and Signature.

As the global leader in hybrid working, IWG now has 4,000 locations in more than 120 countries, but the potential for further growth is exponential with an estimated 1.2 billion white-collar workers globally and a total addressable market of more than $2 trillion (£1.57 trillion).

IWG is working with landlords and developers to transform conventional spaces into dynamic and thriving work environments for workers while generating substantial and sustainable revenue streams for its partners. IWG added 462 new locations in 2022, so this new milestone represents significant growth.

Growing demand amongst property owners and investors to open a new IWG location or convert an existing one is being driven by two distinct yet complementary real estate trends. First, companies are reappraising their property portfolios and downsizing in city centres, replacing long, restrictive, and expensive leases with flexible space with operators like IWG. Second, they are taking on flexible workspace in local neighbourhoods, closer to where their people live and want to be, as part of the increasingly popular ‘hub-and-spoke' office model, where employees divide their time between home, local offices, and city headquarters. ​ 

The majority of IWG’s new locations are in the suburbs, smaller commuter towns and cities. These even include towns with populations as small as 5,000 - 10,000, which are all seeing the strong demand for hybrid working solutions. The group is expanding its network locations deep into the heart of the communities where they are needed.

A recent study by IWG and Arup found that the number of office workers in commuter towns could increase substantially, as businesses shift permanently to hybrid working. Academics, such as Professor Nicholas Bloom of Stanford University, anticipate that up to 30-40% of workers will work in the hybrid model long term.

Desire among workers to avoid lengthy and costly daily commutes has also had a major impact, with many aiming for improved work-life balance and to cut down on unnecessary expenses. According to IWG's research**, only one in five workers would commute more than 30 minutes daily, while 60% express a desire for a workspace within 15 minutes of their homes. A study of 2,000 hybrid workers*** has also shown that hybrid workers enjoy an average increase of 4.7 weekly exercise hours, 71 hours of sleep per year, and improvements in their diet.

With more than 4,000 locations spanning across more than 120 countries in every time zone, and leveraging its three decades of experience, IWG provides an array of workspace solutions for properties of all shapes, sizes, and descriptions. Whether it's a two-storey building in an out-of-town business park, an office block in a prestigious downtown locale, or a former retail unit in a bustling shopping centre, IWG tailors its offerings to meet the diverse demands of its customers and enables partners to monetise vacant space.

Becoming an IWG partner or franchisee provides access to a wealth of expertise in flexible workspace solutions. Partners gain access to IWG’s platform to maximise the return on their real estate space by capitalising on the rapidly expanding demand for hybrid working. With an annual investment of around £50m into its technology platform, IWG provides partners with access to all the company’s expertise as well as design and fit-out support and sales and marketing capabilities. Partner locations can go from concept to fully operational in as little as 10 weeks, while the partnership model provides string recurring monthly income without the headaches of lengthy renewals or void periods or overreliance on single leases.

The flexible workspace sector is projected to grow by 600% by 2030, and data from Indeed, the world’s largest job site, previously reported a staggering 6,531% increase in searches for ‘hybrid’. As businesses embrace hybrid working for the long term, IWG’s solutions become a strategic advantage for property owners seeking to capitalise on this trend.

Mark Dixon, IWG Founder and CEO comments: “At IWG, we have accelerated our capital-light growth strategy allowing us to capitalise on the growing pipeline of property investors seeking to maximise their returns by partnering with us. In fact, we signed twice as many agreements 2023 as we did the previous year, and we continue to accelerate further.

The great lease resignation is transforming the commercial real estate landscape, with increasing numbers of businesses opting for flexible workspace providers like IWG over long-term conventional office leases. The IWG network is growing fast to meet the significant demand for high-quality flexible workspaces on people’s doorsteps, as hybrid working continues to become the default way of working for white-collar workers.”

Thomas Sinclair, IWG Group Chief Development Officer comments: “We are making significant strides towards our aim of having an IWG centre within reach of every town, village and suburb in our key markets, while at the same time providing a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for property owners and investors to turn buildings into thriving flexible workspaces. This milestone speaks to the trust our partners place in IWG, and we look forward to continuing to expand our network further into the heart of communities, meeting the burgeoning demand from billions of white-collar workers worldwide.”

About IWG PLC

IWG 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 organisations on the planet, to individuals and the next generation of industry leaders. All of them harness the power of IWG’s hybrid working platform to increase their productivity, efficiency, agility, and market proximity. ​ 

IWG’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 IWG app. ​ 

For more information 

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