The traditional office paradigm is undergoing a transformation as a shift to hybrid work fuels a demand for coworking spaces across South Africa’s major cities.
Venture Workspace surveyed 94 South African businesses, the majority of them small businesses, and found that 60% of them have embraced the hybrid work model, choosing coworking spaces as their new work sanctuaries. In addition, 44% have resolved never to return to the confines of a traditional office.
This paradigm shift is primarily due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with more than half of the 60% of survey respondents occupying coworking spaces admitting to making the switch post-pandemic.
Louis Fourie, co-founder of Venture Workspace explains, “Covid made people re-evaluate how they want to work and play, the desire for a better work-life balance is now a defining factor in the choices made by workers.”
Forty one percent of respondents identified the convenience of having everything they need at their coworking space as the most significant benefit. This was closely followed by not wanting to sit in traffic, with 23% citing it as a major advantage.
According to Fourie, the rise of suburban coworking specifically, is not just a global trend, but a phenomenon sweeping South Africa. “Workers have realised that they don’t need the swanky office in the CBD. Instead, they prefer a working space that is close to their homes and their kids’ schools. The traditional office is fast becoming a thing of the past.”
Survey respondents revealed that shared workspaces significantly enhance their productivity and happiness.
A significant 43% of respondents would return to a traditional office space only if they had to, while 99% felt safer working from coworking spaces and considered the convenience and flexibility offered by such spaces higher than the sharing of amenities.
The trend towards short-term leases is on the rise too, not only for small businesses and start-ups but also among larger companies.
Asked why businesses in South Africa should consider coworking solutions, 36% of respondents emphasised the cost-effectiveness, 29% cited its suitability for the hybrid work model, and 24% recognised it as a solution to load-shedding, given coworking spaces’ provision of backup power.