WeWork to open offices in Orange County on 1 July
WeWork is set to open a two-floor co-working office in Orange County, called Irvine Spectrum Center, on 1 July. Facilities will include shared conference rooms, high-speed internet, printing services, and speciality coffee. One-person private offices will range from $600 to $690 per month, with a six-person office priced from $2,950 to $3,550. 

As baby boomers sail off into the sunset of retirement, millennials are flooding the American workforce, bringing with them new ideals of corporate environments.

There may be no better example of the flexible, noncommittal work-life millennials crave than the recent proliferation of co-working office spaces. For businesses looking to chuck the overhead of expensive office real estate and equipment, co-working environments offer a cost-effective alternative with all the perks of a swank, Google-inspired workspace.

Known for its beer on tap and weekly happy hours, WeWork, one the nation’s largest co-working companies, is making a push into Orange County with the July 1 opening of its Irvine Spectrum Center offices. WeWork’s two-floor space has floor-to-ceiling views of the Great Park Balloon and Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park.

Globally, co-working spaces are expected to grow at 40 percent per year with more than 1 million members by 2018, according to a 2014 report by Emergent Research, a small-business consulting and analytic firm.

Membership service

Founded in New York in 2010 by two entrepreneurs, Miguel McKelvey and Adam Neumann, WeWork raised $150 million in funding in early 2014. Just two years later, Fast Co. estimated WeWork’s valuation at $16 billion.

Dubbed a “unicorn” by the pundits of Silicon Valley, the firm rents large spaces and sublets desks and offices through a membership service. Tenants pay on a month-to-month basis, with no long-term contract required.

“Compared to a traditional lease, WeWork offers flexibility,” said Jon Slavet, the company’s West Coast general manager. “If a large company is looking to put a 50 sales people in, we can customize a floor for them.”

WeWork locations, with 60,000 members worldwide, have seen businesses large and small take up space, Slavet said. “We have lots of different kinds of companies in our community, from startups and huge technology companies to Fortune 500 companies looking for regional headquarters.”

Nationally, private office spaces start at $450 a month with various options, including a $325 monthly dedicated desk space. At WeWork’s Irvine center, private offices for one person range from $600 to $690 a month. A six-person office in Irvine runs from $2,950 to $3,550.

The rent for WeWork’s prefurnished space includes access to shared conference rooms, high-speed internet, specialty coffee and printing services.

For businesses or individuals looking to use WeWork’s network without occupying desk space, the company also offers access to its online community, credits for booking space and access to events for $45 a month.

Co-working competition

According to Slavet, companies can save up to 20 percent per year by opting for a WeWork office, compared with a traditional office lease.

In Orange County, office vacancies fell to 11.9 percent from 13.1 percent, and rental rates rose to $2.16 from $2.13 per square foot per month in the first quarter of this year, as reported by global estate firm Cushman & Wakefield.

“Strategically, the L.A. metro areas and Orange County areas are big for us for several reason,” said Slavet. “There is vibrant and diverse ecosystem (in Orange County) of creators of all kinds, startups, larger growth companies that are innovators.”

Although WeWork remains the largest global co-working space in Orange County, it isn’t the first. The Wayfare in Costa Mesa offers full-day and half-day desk passes starting at $151 a month. Back in Irvine, RealOfficeCenters has three co-working office spaces and one near the Irvine Spectrum that offers 16 hours of office time at $200 to $300 per month.

The nonprofit PeopleSpace in Irvine may not have the bells and whistles of WeWork, but the 15,000-square-foot space fills almost to capacity every month, said CEO Melinda Kim.

“The difference between us and WeWork is the vibe and culture,” said Kim. “We are more community-based and about the people.

“We don’t focus on the furniture or anything like that. Our space is a converted warehouse. We are more grass roots and do a lot more than just co-working. We tend to think of ourselves as more hub than a co-working space.”

Despite the approach of various co-working spaces in Orange County, Kim is glad that WeWork is moving in.

“I think it’s great,” said Kim. “As WeWork expands, the more people will know what co-working is and how it helps the whole community. They are spreading the world of co-working around.

“So far, co-working has been popular in Silicon Valley, New York and other big city areas, but in places like Orange County its a new thing, and it’s nice to give it more attention,” she said.

Beer-on-tap chats

One of the biggest perks included in WeWork’s rent is the direct contact with a range of other businesses within the same office, says Kate Dehnel, WeWork’s Southern California community lead.

“All of our buildings are designed to promote familiarity amongst members,” Dehnel said.

The glass office walls, kitchen area and shared spaces open the doors to opportunities to strike up conversations, which often can lead to creativity and connection among members, she said.

Silicon Valley behemoth Google designed its 1.1-million-square-foot campus to enable employers to be within a 2.5-minute walk from one another. Tech messiah Steve Jobs reportedly had collaboration in mind when he designed Pixar’s headquarters with its bathrooms at the center.

“A lot of our members have actually done transactional businesses with one another just based on a conversation by the coffee station or getting beers together,” Dehnel added.

In addition to serendipitous conversation, members of WeWork can attend the three to five sponsored events organized each week. From lunch-and-learns to panel discussions, the offices offer a range of events to encourage members to connect with one another and grow their businesses.

Despite the numerous perks, shared office spaces are not all microbrews and taco Tuesdays, according to critics. Downsides can include dealing with co-workers making loud phone calls, possible interruptions and lost time due to socializing.

WeWork also has to battle numerous misconceptions about co-working, said Slavet. Before joining WeWork, many people assume the offices are crammed with millennials running tiny tech businesses, he said.

“If you walk the halls of WeWork, you will find lawyers, bankers and commercial real estate companies,” said Slavet. “Yes, we have lots of millennials. They are the largest … by numbers but we also have a lot of diversity. We have (people who are) in their 40s, 30s and 50s in our building.”

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