IWG plc, a hybrid workspace company with more than 3,000 locations worldwide, is expanding its presence in Duke City.
In the first quarter of 2023, Regus – one of the brands aligned with IWG – will open its fourth coworking location in Albuquerque, and fifth in New Mexico. The 10,120-square-foot facility at 5301 Central NE will include office space, coworking space, virtual offices (for businesses that may not have a mailing address) and meeting rooms.
“Workers within Albuquerque and the greater Albuquerque area are looking to reduce their commute time … to really maximize their productivity,” said Wayne Berger, CEO of IWG North America and Latin America. “We’re seeing this demand continue to grow in the greater Albuquerque area, which in turn has really, frankly, inspired us to make sure we continue to open up Regus spaces.”
According to Berger, IWG found that demand in the Albuquerque area for flexible workspaces grew 40% since before the pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic introduced many office workers to remote work – but Berger said that while more workers want flexible workspaces, it doesn’t necessarily mean they want to work from home.
“The biggest misnomer is flexible working means home-base working,” Berger said. “It’s boring, it’s isolating. … It’s one thing if people have an office in their house, but the reality is, for most places around the world, living space is compact.”
Additionally, Berger said many companies aren’t interested in entering long-term capital leases anymore – leaving many landlords with hard-to-rent space. The new location was a traditional office building, which IWG is converting into a coworking space in a partnership with the current landlord.
Similarly, with rising construction costs, many companies are unwilling to pay to build or renovate office spaces, Berger said. Rising costs come with rising rents; a Colliers International report from earlier this year found that asking rates rose, on average, 7% over the past year.
“A long-term lease is capital intensive,” Berger said. “It requires millions of dollars to actually invest to build out the space … and things are so unpredictable.”
The second quarter Colliers report found that there was no new office space under construction in the Albuquerque area.
The new Albuquerque location is one of 300 IWG workspaces currently under construction across the country. Berger said that the goal is to add 1,000 new locations per year. The new Albuquerque location joins other Regus locations in the city in the Northeast Heights, Downtown and across from Winrock Town Center.
“Very few people want to actually work from home five days a week, and only 15% of people want to be in a corporate office five days a week,” Berger said. “They want separation from home and office, but they want it accessible.”
