"Flexible working environments" in the Asia-Pacific will expand at an average rate of 10 to 15 per cent annually, according to an April coworking report by Cushman & Wakefield and CoreNet Global.
SMEs, which make up 96% of companies in SEA, look for workspaces that offer speed and flexibility to allow growth or downsizing as needed without being locked down by long-term rent. Combining with the remarkable size and growth of the ASEAN economy, the environment is ripe for flexible options to service these fast growing SMEs.
Vendors such as FlySpaces act as a growth engine for SMEs.
William Tan, CEO of ForexStrategiesWork.com, a company which provides training in Forex, notes that owning a space on his own would be a waste of resources and the service provided by FlySpaces made growing his business much simpler.
“I can just get in touch with someone who will do the coordination as well as provide the availability and confirmation from the space owner and that helps me a lot because I don’t have to go hunting around for space,” said Tan
Enxin Wong, manager of That Marketing Guy, agrees. While expanding his company from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, Mr Wong turned to FlySpaces. “Being in unfamiliar territory, we didn’t know where or how to start, or what would be right for us,” he says.
By outsourcing the acquisition of office space to professionals with knowledge of the region, That Marketing Guy was able to “make a strategic choice for our venture” and become a serious contender in the Kuala Lumpur marketing and advertising landscape.
Outsourcing office-space acquisition allows owners to focus on the business itself
ZipMatch, a digital real estate marketplace based in the Philippines, scaled up operations after transitioning from traditional office space and opting for a more flexible option.
To maintain their competitive advantage, ZipMatch used FlySpaces to find a space more conducive to growth. Taking advantage of the flexibility this offered, ZipMatch was able to focus on expanding its business across the Philippines
The services provided by FlySpaces has also enabled startups such as First Circle to achieve a level of financial security and stability that enabled it to now have its own space. A firm dedicated to helping SMEs grow by streamlining their finance acquisition,First Circle as a finance company needs to be as agile and flexible as possible.
“Additional financing is a business multiplier, something that we provide to our clients on a daily basis. FlySpaces enabled us to remain agile with flexible leasing allowing us to focus on clients and grow at a faster rate than if we had leased our own place." said its spokesman. As First Circle’s growth continued, FlySpaces provided new options until the company was able to secure an office of its own.
The coworking industry is projected to grow rapidly, and strategic partnerships are already being formed
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has predicted that by 2030, 30% of real estate portfolios will be made up of flexible workspaces.
Companies such as Regus and WeWork have dominated the arena as providers of such spaces. These operators have found that partnering with platforms such as FlySpaces has been integral to their own growth.
The growth is in line with the ASEAN member states becoming major drivers of economic growth in the region, acting as a launchpad for new businesses and fuelling demand for office and retail spaces.
Vendors such as FlySpaces helps companies to rent a cubicle, an office, coworking space, or meeting/training room for a day or year, and get access to office resources in a shared environment, often including shared events.
Phoebe Bernardo, the Regional Marketing Manager at Regus, says FlySpaces “has been very supportive and helpful in reaching out to the right market” providing fast and easy solutions to its clients.”