In the biggest sign yet that flexible workspace is changing the dynamics of the conventional office market, 35% of office deals in the last 12 months involved operators of flex workspace. There is now more demand for alternative delivery methods as corporate occupiers switch to more agile models of workspace delivery.
The research, conducted by The Instant Group, shows that by 2023, 12.5% of commercial real estate will be in flexible workspace. Traditional landlords are realising the need to diversify and 83% of flex spaces in the UK are now owned by smaller, niche operators, compared to just 17% which are operated by the bigger brand names.
John Duckworth, Managing Director UK & EMEA at The Instant Group comments: “For the last five years, the size of flex requirements has increased as 25+ and 50+ desk deals have grown faster than the coworking membership element of the market with 45% of the FTSE 100 procuring space via InstantOffices.com over that time.
“These larger corporate deals now make up a greater proportion of flex space demand than at any time previously and have increased significantly since the BREXIT vote and the long period of uncertainty that has prevailed since. Flex space is now a fast, agile route to market for companies of all sizes, and its adoption will only increase as larger organisations work flex options into their processes.
“With large, blue-chip clients predicting that 35 to 40 per cent of their portfolios will consist of flex options in the future, there will be phenomenal enterprise-level demand to drive future growth. The maturation of supply and economic attraction to these models will also further push this market success.
“With more corporates adopting flex space, diversification in the market, decreasing desk rates and greater franchising in the sector, 2020 looks set to be a prosperous year for the flexible market. The impact on the flex market has been pronounced with demand growing to record levels as clients choose alternative solutions.”
As the largest and oldest independent flexible workspace specialist, The Instant Group research and insight is based on more than 20-years of data and its work with clients procuring and managing office space in more than 2,280 cities across 153 countries.
