Are Millennials the New Faces of Co-Working?

Whether they’re creating a startup or simply working remotely, millennials are not on trend with the way most individuals have worked for years: for one company and in a corporate office. This difference is also causing the youngest working generation to fall more and more in love with the idea of using shared, co-working office spaces for their day-to-day business ventures.

The Co-Working Boom

Shared office spaces are becoming extremely popular as a result of the many benefits they provide those who choose them. According to Forbes, there are more than 11,100 co-working spaces in the United States, and we are likely to see more than double that number by 2020. One of the reasons for this boom is the increase of millennial workers with their non-traditional job statuses. For them, co-working environments fit perfectly into their needs.

Why Millennials Love Co-Work Spaces

Millennials are choosing co-working spaces for many reasons. One of these is because it is much cheaper to rent what you need in a shared office space than to rent an entire floor. In a co-working space, you only have to rent out what you need for your particular business, which could be just a desk (if it’s you alone) or a couple of desks (if you have more employees). You can also pay extra to get something like a meeting room when it’s necessary, and you don’t have to commit to a year-long (or longer) lease because most co-working spaces allow individuals to rent by the month, the week, or even the day.

Those who rent these spaces also don’t have to worry about the day-to-day minutia associated with owning an office, including cleaning and maintenance. Instead, these are taken care of by the owner of the building, and a portion of the worker’s rent is used to cover the costs. This way, millennial workers can focus on getting their jobs done rather than on building upkeep.

The location and opportunities associated with co-working spaces also are likely to draw millennials to them. These spaces are extremely beneficial for those running a startup because they have the opportunity to meet and network with other entrepreneurs. In addition, these spaces are usually centrally located in an urban area, which is attractive to many hard-working millennials who want to live and work in city atmospheres and who like the idea of everything they need being in the same general area.

One other reason millennials are choosing co-working spaces: they’re cool. Instead of starting your business or working for the man in a stuffy office, you can go to work in a place where you will meet new people and experience new opportunities every day. This is a highly attractive concept to many individuals in this generation who balk at the idea of working in a traditional office space.

If the present is any indication, it’s likely the millennial population will increase the popularity of the co-working space more and more as time goes on.