CBRE-backed co-working operator acquires The Great Room

Co-working provider The Great Room has been purchased through US flexible workplace company Industrious in its efforts to expand internationally. On May 9th, the New York-based company announced the acquisition of The Great Room as well as European co-working firm Welkin & Meraki.

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As per a person cited from The Bloomberg, Industrious paid around 100 million dollars ($139 millions) as cash, and shares to the companies. The deal instantly adds 350,000 square feet to its portfolio, which includes six markets across Asia and Europe as well as 600,000 square feet of deals in important cities in both regions.

The inventory of The Great Room is comprised of around 180,000 square feet spread across seven locations, including five of them in Singapore situated in One George Street, Centennial Tower, Ngee Ann City, Raffles Arcade and Afro-Asia. The two remaining locations are located in Hong Kong and Bangkok, respectively. In addition, Welkin & Meraki operates five workplaces that are flexible throughout Paris, Eindhoven, and Brussels.

The two brands The Great Room and Welkin & Meraki will continue to operate under the respective brands.

“We are delighted to join forces the Great Room and The Great Room and Welkin & Meraki within the Industrious ecosystem, particularly considering our common goal of providing the best, flexible and high-quality workplaces,” declares Jamie Hodari, CEO and co-founder of Industrious in a statement to the press. “We are looking forward to expanding our offerings globally to help support work-from anywhere models and ensuring that we adhere to providing the best customer service within the industry.”

Jaelle Ang Co-founder and CEO The Great Room, along with her co-founder The Great Room, believes this acquisition will improve The Great Room’s position, due to the increased scale and the network. After the transaction, Industrious now holds some five million square feet of flexible workspaces across the world. Participants from The Great Room and Welkin & Meraki will have access to workplaces in the Industrious facilities and in turn, vice versa. “I believe there is immediate cross-sells and revenue synergies and a better member value proposition,” she says in an interview with EdgeProp Singapore.

Ang continues to be the The Great Room’s CEO The Great Room, reporting to Hodari. She says that the acquisition allows The Great Room to be better prepared to grow in the flexible workspace sector that she anticipates will expand over the next decade to account for around 30% of the total commercial space in the world, up from its present level of 3%.

In announcing it is true that The Great Room and Industrious have the same core values, in terms of an approach that is centered around people warm, welcoming services, and meeting the present and future requirements of its the members Ang adds that with the collaboration, The company will be able to draw on Industrious the best practices. “I think that there is much to learn since they’ve been in business for longer than we have,” she comments.

Industrious The main market for the company is the US in which it has in more than 150 locations across fifty cities. The company’s portfolio has expanded quickly since the beginning of the epidemic, adding around one million square feet in space being added by 2020 and an additional 1.1 million square feet added in 2021.

In February of last year, Industrious crossed a new landmark as CBRE Group made a US$200 million investment in the company by acquiring 35% stake in the firm. This was later increased to 40% which secured its status as a majority shareholder. CBRE’s flexible-space solutions business, Hana, was also integrated into Industrious expanding its offerings within the US and extending its reach to the UK with new locations with offices in London in London and Manchester.

The group is planning to increase its international footprint before the time the year’s end. Asia Pacific (Apac) will play a key role in the company’s growth path according to Ang. “There’s a strong determination to expand throughout Apac,” she says adding that Apac’s expansion will be driven by organic growth as well as M&A activities.

In The Great Room, Ang says the company is looking for deals to expand into its current areas that include Singapore, Bangkok and Hong Kong There are plans to expand in new areas, with priority areas being Sydney, Tokyo and Shanghai.