Business built on shared office space pivots with new model born from the pandemic

CHICAGO (CBS) — Social distancing is not a term any of us used two and a half years ago. You didn’t blink an eye if you shared space with others.

The company WeWork capitalized on our willingness to get cozy to share costs of commercial rent. How did that work out in a pandemic?

Well, let’s put it this way: WeWork recently made an $8.8 million dollar expansion in Chicago.

Lauren Victory takes a look at how the company made tweaks to its model.

At Huntsman Architectural Group, designers are welcome to stay home to work, but meeting in-person is better for them. Face-to-face interaction helps with collaboration, as they create beautiful office layouts.

Lately, managing director Andrew Volcken says clients have been hungry for hybrid workspace designs -somewhere that inspires employees to step away from working fully remote.

“The office has to become a destination. The office has to be a place where people want to. If you can work from anywhere, why work in the office?” said Volcken.

He and his team map out offices of the future while based in one: the new WeWork location on LaSalle and Illinois.

Traditionally, WeWork leases individual, private office space to businesses; then offers amenities like free coffee in a communal area.

“We are literally operating at pre-pandemic levels,” said Territory Vice President for Central-West, Robin Cardoso.

That might surprise you. How does a company famous for its sharing find success in a now germophobic society used to being safe at home?

Social distancing is huge, of course, but part of the answer is flexibility; from allowing pandemic puppies in the office to offering different types of working areas, including 448 N LaSalle’s outdoor terrace or huge lounge with TV.

Cardoso said WeWork’s hottest new trend born out of the pandemic is the on-demand option, where customers can pay for what pay for what they need on a daily basis. It costs $29 for a day to be able to use shared spaces, and from there you can book a conference room or other space.

CBS 2 asked how on-demand works if too many people want to use WeWork offices on the same day.

“We have thresholds that allow us to kind of cap the number of people that can come into any given space,” Cardoso said.

The company is also now offering an all-access pass for $299 a month.

“So, they [customers] have the flexibility to work anywhere and you can start here at 448 [N LaSalle] in Chicago and then maybe you fly to Seattle and you end your day in Seattle at another [WeWork] location,” said Cardoso.

The Huntsman team doesn’t take advantage of any of the newer options. They’re satisfied enough that their private office comes with only a year-long lease commitment, in case they decide to expand.

About 50 percent of their work is done at the WeWork River North location, which means commuting at least a few days a week. Volcken finds that his employees don’t mind.

“On those days you are coming in, there’s a bonus to it,” he said, referring to all the amenities – including free food, a workout room, and the outdoor terrace.

WeWork does not have locations in the Chicago suburbs, but Cardoso says the company is exploring some options right now.