WeWork aiming to get busy but will it carry on camping?
THE cult of WeWork shows no sign of losing momentum, according to Spy’s man in the property pinstripes. At the US firm’s Christmas bash for broking types, we hear the company, backed by those nice Saudis (SoftBank’s Vision Fund), was talking bullishly about doubling its footprint in London next year, from the current 2.7 million square feet of space. It only has some 50 of the capital’s 1600 serviced-office sites, so there is plenty to go for. It’s good news for the occupiers, and even better news for the brokers who should be filling their boots next year. Fingers crossed the company won’t make them go to its weirdo summer camp to get the business. WILL there be a Christmas card to the Competition and Markets Authority from Sainsbury’s and Asda? After the grocers complained they can’t meet the CMA’s deadlines over its £14 billion mega-deal, the watchdog extended its timetable from January to early February. At least they could drop the legal challenge.
SPY hears the second Bell Pottinger “ghosts of Christmas past” lunch will take place at The Fable in High Holborn on Monday, welcome to all ex-employees of the City spinner which imploded last year after stirring racial tensions in South Africa. Former chief executive James Henderson probably shouldn’t show up though. SHORT-SELLING king Simon “Evil Knievil” Cawkwell looks like he’s made a few bob from the week’s Westminster shenanigans. He writes: “I was minded to do nothing until Michael Heseltine came on shortly after 9am describing what was going on as catastrophic. I then immediately knew I just had to go long on the FTSE and the pound versus the dollar.” He is “mildly bullish” on a no-deal Brexit. Presumably he’s readying a big short on the pound.
US firm McCormick — best known over here for Schwartz spices — is suing an upstart rival for allegedly infringing the trademarks on one of its biggest sellers, Old Bay seasoning. Primal Palate launched the millennial-sounding “New Bae”, which McCormick accuses of piggy- backing on its brand and confusing customers. This one could get spicy.
AS WOULD-BE developers eye the BT headquarters in the City, Spy hears that Hong Kong hotels developer K&K is among the early front-runners in a crowded field to nab the site. Whether the deal will get done before Christmas remains to be seen, although industry chatter puts Stratford, already the home of the BT Sports studios, as the tip for where the struggling telecoms firm will eventually end up. The stampede of interest is due to the fact that in the City, “there’s barely anywhere left to build”. Expect similar levels of interest early next year when Royal Bank of Scotland’s former headquarters at 280 Bishopsgate hits the market, our gossips say.