58% of knowledge workers now work in a hybrid arrangement. The days of spending five days a week in a permanent office are behind us. And yet, there’s little evidence that the world is ready to move to permanent remote work. So how can coworking spaces for business help?
Business expansion is a vital step for any company aiming to elevate its presence, increase its customer base, and boost its revenues. However, the road to expansion isn’t always straightforward.
One of the challenges is the scaling up of physical office space, which brings logistical hassles and steep costs.
This is where coworking offices can help. With their flexibility and accessibility, they are an increasingly appealing option.
10 ways to use coworking spaces for business expansion
There are plenty of ways that a coworking space can help you achieve business growth. Here are 10 of the most important:
1. Flexibility
Coworking spaces are perfect if you want a more flexible approach to office space.
Traditional offices can be difficult to scale fast. If they’re leased directly from a landlord, it can be difficult to gain permission to make changes that accommodate growth. Often, business owners have to get more space than they need so there’s room to grow later.
When you outgrow your office, you have to start a new one from scratch. All of this adds further costs, admin, and stress. With coworking, space isn’t an issue.
It’s easy to add or remove memberships, without having to worry about outgrowing your office or getting a new one.
2. Cost efficiency
The flexibility of coworking offices also helps save costs.
Having a permanent office comes with plenty of upfront overheads, especially if you’re buying outright. At the same time, having to get more space than you need can often feel like a waste of money.
With coworking locations, you only ever pay for the specific number of employees using the office at that time. That means costs can rise in line with your head count.
It also means you can eliminate the need for costly overheads and up-front investments.
3. Access to services and facilities
With a solely traditional office, it can be hard to make space for the full range of facilities you need. This is because, in the cases where you can’t accommodate a hybrid office or hot desking, you often have to prioritise much-needed permanent desks.
But coworking and office spaces give you access to private booths, meeting rooms, breakout areas, and more. All as and when you need them.
This lets you work when and how you like without having to compromise on cost or space.
4. Engage with diverse communities
In a fixed office, most of the time you’ll only come into contact with people from your company.
Of course, you want to collaborate as much as possible. But it’s also great to work alongside people from a whole range of companies and diverse communities.
Coworking offices for business offer a great way to build networks and get out of your comfort zone.
5. Geographic expansion
Coworking spaces are also perfect for expanding in different cities or countries.
Leading providers will have a portfolio of locations for coworking space across the country and around the world. This makes adding a seat in Manchester or Berlin no harder than one in London.
This approach makes it easier to hire the best talent wherever they are. That means you can expand into new areas without a huge upfront investment in cost, admin and space.
6. Employee wellbeing
Employee wellbeing is another key reason to use a coworking space. One recent survey suggests home working creates 'loneliness and heightened levels of stress' for 81% of under-35s.
By giving remote workers the opportunity to leave the house and be around other remote workers, you can help reduce this stress.
7. Potential networking and business collaboration
As a place to build connections and meet new people, there’s nothing quite like a coworking space for business.
That’s because they’re filled with like-minded professionals, and you don’t have to go to dedicated meetings and networking events to find them. This makes it easier than ever to bump into potential clients and partners in an organic and natural way.
8. Encourage innovation
Innovation is the key to achieving success as a business and growing your customer or client base. Coworking and office spaces are great places to do this. That’s because they’re full of small companies, start-ups and flexible workers from a wide range of different industries.
Coworking spaces are where all this talent can come to exchange ideas and learn from each others’ experiences. That plays a huge role in boosting innovation.
9. Access to supportive systems
Coworking locations can also offer support like mentoring programs, workshops and networking events. This is particularly helpful for small companies that might not otherwise get access to schemes like this.
These programs can help you understand how to manage time and stress. At the same time, you can learn from industry experts and find new solutions to business challenges.
10. Reduce secondary costs
With a traditional office, you’re not only buying the space. You also need to pay for the infrastructure, furniture, utilities, and more.
This isn’t the case with a coworking space, since you don’t have to pay for overheads at all. This makes for a much cheaper and more flexible approach to office space.
How to maximise the use of coworking spaces for your business
It’s not just about having a coworking desk to put your laptop on. There are plenty of different ways you can use the space to support your team:
As a secondary office space
Even if you’ve already got a permanent office, a coworking space can give you extra capacity or flexibility. If you’ve outgrown your office, a coworking space can help you expand your capacity without significant overheads.
As a satellite office
Satellite offices are another key benefit. If you’re hiring in new locations, you likely don’t want the costs of a whole new office. Coworking spaces give you somewhere to work without the admin or costs.
As a training and meetings space
It’s important to take some time out of the busy day-to-day and focus on the bigger picture. But it can be difficult to create a dedicated space in a traditional office that’s solely for meetings.
When renting a flexible coworking space, you can also enjoy access to meeting rooms and training spaces on demand. This will save you from having to commit valuable office space for irregular events like client meetings or in-house training workshops.
Support your business expansion with Regus
For businesses of any size, coworking desks are a fantastic place to grow in the world of hybrid work. They offer a flexible approach to office space, a wide range of facilities and access to a diverse business network.
This is all a big helping hand when it comes to expanding your business. With hybrid work now here to stay, there has never been a better time to explore a coworking space.
With Regus, you get flexible access to coworking spaces, lounges and private offices. You can choose from a monthly package of five, 10 or unlimited days, and have over 4,000 centres globally to choose from.
To find out more about our memberships, reach out to us today to speak to one of our experts and work your way with Regus.