Co-working space leasing in Q1 2019 up at 2.9 mn sq ft

Leasing activity in the flexible or co-working office segment during the January-March quarter (Q1) of 2019 surged by 277 per cent on a year-on-year basis to 2.9 million square feet across the country`s major cities, a CBRE report said on Tuesday. Compared to the previous quarter, October-December 2018, the space take-up rose by 70 per cent, said the report tiled "India Flexible Space Quarterly Digest - Q1 2019", adding that Bengaluru and Delhi-NCR were the larget markets for flexible space, accounting for more than half of flexible space leasing in the country.

Anshuman Magazine, Chairman and CEO, India, South East Asia, Middle East and Africa for CBRE, said: "Given that the Indian flexible space market is one of the biggest across APAC, we anticipate that this segment will remain high on the investor radar as well. We expect that the leasing quantum of this segment would marginally rise from about 7.1 million square feet in 2018 to about 10 million square feet by 2020 and will remain high on the investor radar going forward."

As per the report, more established corporates would opt for flexible spaces in the near future. "The optimism of flexible space operators is being fuelled by the rising interest of established corporates in this segment. We anticipate that this trend would continue, given the willingness of operators to customise offerings and prioritise member loyalties," it said. It further observed that established corporates would take up a larger number of seats as compared to start-ups in the future.