Are Co-Working Spaces Taking Over?

The newest Village Workspace is located in West Los Angeles.

LOS ANGELES— Village Workspace has just opened its second location in West L.A., and the brand’s owner Oliver Barry says that this is just the beginning. The co-working brand already has a location in Santa Monica, and this new space may be the first of a citywide expansion. Co-working spaces have exploded on the office scene in the last few years, just as the office market has gone through an evolution. TO find out about the newest Village Workspace and why co-working spaces are the new norm in office, we sat down with Barry for an exclusive interview. Here, he tells us that co-working spaces are the future of office. GlobeSt.com: Why was West L.A. a good fit for your newest Village Workspace location? Oliver Barry: The area is exploding at the moment with very cool new media companies. We have got a space in Santa Monica, and we were one of the first co-working spaces there and we felt that there were a lot of people who live outside of Santa Monica that did not want to go all the way down to the beach but wanted to have the opportunity to work in really funky workspaces. We want to edge more and more into town so that we can give this opportunity to everyone in Los Angeles. GlobeSt.com: What users are you targeting for the space? Barry: We are target location specific. In this location, we have a lot of virtual reality companies that are already moving into the space because we could see that there was this new industry of tech that would sit nicely on the Westside. I think it all depends on the area that you are in. It doesn’t matter if you are in a tech company. Anyone that has a business wants to work in a space that is good and has good community and is going to help them to grow their business, whatever their business is. Everyone needs to work in a space that we fundamentally believe in. GlobeSt.com: We have seen more and more co-working spaces come to Los Angeles. How do you set yourselves apart? Barry: We are a bit of a hybrid as well between our co-working spaces and others. We fundamentally believe that a productive business doesn’t want to be in a big pen because there is no privacy. Our office spaces have a balance between private space and open space. It is the balance between all of it that is important. People don’t want to be in these dark, low-hanging ceilings taupe and cream offices. I believe that if you are in an inspired environment, people are going to work better and harder and they are going to enjoy work. We also have very good events throughout the year. We listen to our members, so we have a lot of food events and music events. The events are not just about business. It is a diverse range of events, and we never over do it because we remember that this is still people’s workspace. GlobeSt.com: The office market is going through a transformation. How are co-working spaces part of the evolution of office space? Barry: I think co-working space is the future of all office spaces. This is happening globally; this is a movement that is happening. When I grew up, you thought that when you had a job, you would work for one company for your whole life, and when I grew up, you thought that you would work for one company at a time. Today, people are working for multiple companies for multiple companies. There is much more telecommuting than ever before and people are more flexible than ever before. Co-working is supplying office space to this whole new generation of workers. It is happening all over the world. Do you consider yourself a real estate professional, or another industry? Barry: I don’t consider anyone who moves in to be a tenant. They are the members of a club. On a fundamental level, of course, it is real estate. You have to be in a good location with easy access with lots of amenities and restaurants around, but when you are in the space, it is not just an office. The real estate side is the foundation of it all.