Hong Kong developer Swire jumps on to co-working space bandwagon
Swire, the biggest landlord in Quarry Bay, turns its 30,000 sq ft technology start-up accelerator at Taikoo Place into a shared working hub
Hong Kong’s real estate giant Swire Properties launched a co-working space on Tuesday, aiming to use its expansive network of corporate tenants to tap the red-hot shared office market.
Swire, the city’s fifth-largest developer by market capitalisation, has turned “blueprint,” a technology start-up accelerator providing free working space founded in 2014, into a full-fledged co-working hub occupying 30,000 sq ft at Taikoo Place in east Hong Kong Island. The co-working hub was expanded from 20,000 sq ft to the current area.
The launch came amid rapid proliferation of co-working space properties in the city, which were likely to occupy more than 1.2 million sq ft total floor area by the end of 2017, soaring 70 per cent from last year, according to CBRE.
Swire, the first traditional developer jumping on the bandwagon, aims to differentiate itself from the other 30 shared office operators in Hong Kong by connecting blueprint members to tenants of its 18 office buildings in the city, that are mostly big companies including insurer Prudential and luxury goods conglomerate LVMH.
“We have a diverse tenant base, and a number of them serve as mentors to start-ups,” said Don Taylor, a director at Swire Properties. “It also gives them the opportunity to see what’s happening in the digital sphere.”
A number of corporate mentors from various sectors have offered time and advice for free to start-ups, Taylor said.
