WeWork aims for 20 Toronto locations

TORONTO• Add co- working giant We Work Cos. to the growing list of players looking to profit from Toronto’s booming office market.

The New York-based company aims to occupy at least 20 different locations in Toronto by 2020, up from three now, Dave McLaughlin, general manager for the Northeast at WeWork, said in a phone interview last week. WeWork opened its first locations in the city last year, both of which were 98 per cent occupied within the first month. A third location was announced in January.

“The bottom line is, we don’t see any limit to demand,” McLaughlin said. “We’re definitely setting our sights high for the city and we think it is an amazing ecosystem for business.”

SoftBank Group Corp.backed WeWork is among the richest private technology companies in the world, with about US$ 4.75 billion in funding. The company has profited off a global shift toward shared offices amid more contract and freelance work, growing to about 230 locations globally in eight years. In Canada, the startup has leased seven buildings in Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto, where office vacancy rates are among the lowest in North America.

WeWork’s appeals include everything from craft beer on tap to apps that connect its tenants, who the company refers to as members. Artwork in i ts first co- working space in Toronto includes a Drakeinspired neon praying- hand sign with the number six beside it. The piece marks the entrance to the sixth floor — and is a nod to Toronto’s 416 area code that the singer, one of the city’s biggest boosters, often references.

While these might be considered perks that would draw hip millennials, WeWork’s members include not just entrepreneurs but also big firms such as Royal Bank of Canada, Shopify and Equifax that may be looking for temporary or spill-over space.

WeWork charges an average of $ 1,000 per month for one- seat offices in Toronto compared with US$ 700 to US $1,000 in Manhattan, while desks in Toronto can go for $450 to $700.