Taxi companies have been challenged by Uber, AirBnB is taking more and more of the hotel market, and co-working spaces have brought radical and, it seems, lasting change to the office world. According to Darnu Group analyst Mantas Mikalauskas, this is the fastest growing office trend, and Lithuania today offers probably the lowest workplace prices in Europe.
"Research by the world's leading real estate companies shows that the number of co-working spaces in Europe has increased by more than 200 percent over the past four years. and the growth rate is not slowing down. This is the fastest growing trend in the office world at the moment. It is predicted that in the 2030s, every third employee of today's business centers will work in co-working spaces", says M. Mikalauskas, analyst of Darnu Group, one of the largest companies in Lithuania that creates spaces for life, work and recreation.
Co-working spaces are fully equipped, work-ready premises that are rented for a short or longer period of time depending on the number of workplaces. Such centers usually offer companies all the necessary services: equipped and constantly maintained workplaces, high-speed Internet, meeting spaces, coffee machines, gyms and even meditation and massage, game rooms. Developers of co-working spaces increasingly offer administrative, accounting, legal and information technology services.
"It should not be expected that this alternative will dislodge conventional, comfortable and stable offices from the market in the next decade. The needs of large companies that have been operating for many years and are growing moderately are most effectively ensured by permanent premises, specially equipped for them. However, changes can be seen here as well. The trend of internal office flexibility is becoming more and more popular: business centers are designed in such a way that the companies or individual employees located in them have as much freedom as possible to plan and set up unique, original offices and change their interior," says M. Mikalauskas.
Lithuania is one of the most competitive countries in Europe
"Renting a place in a co-working space in the Baltic region today is the best conditions on the entire continent, for an average price, only Bucharest is comparable to us. By offering such attractive work opportunities in our country to both local and foreign investors, we have extremely high potential to rapidly develop this rental area in the future," the expert is convinced.
According to Darnu Group data, in 2018 alone the supply of flexible workplaces in the capital increased by 24,5 percent, and this year the market has already filled up over 5.800 square meters. m. new area. Supply in Vilnius continues to grow in double digits.
"Co-working spaces fulfill the new demand dictated by economic changes for flexibility, quick response and temporary solutions. A decade ago we had just one of them. Newly built business centers are increasingly offering co-working spaces in Vilnius - part of the space in them is pre-planned for this purpose. Inquiring and cozy in the old town established co-working spaces, we are also considering such solutions", says M. Mikalauskas. According to him, co-working spaces are planned in the Paupio district under construction.
In the 2030s, one third of offices will be co-working spaces
The development curve of co-working spaces in the last decade is very steep all over the world. The largest provider of commercial premises services JAV the company CBRE Groupcalculates that the growth of co-working office space in the world reached 13 percent annually. In many European countries, since the economic crisis, the supply of such spaces has increased annually by a fifth, in the United States and the United Kingdom - by 10 percent. London remains the city with the largest selection of them in Europe, with more than 1000 such centres.
In total, there are currently almost 18 thousand in the world. of centers offering co-working spaces, this number should increase to 30 thousand in the next four years. And this is not the end. According to other US real estate services companies Colliers International according to a published study, in 2030 co-working spaces will make up a third of the entire supply of office real estate in the world.
