Network of shared office spaces takes shape in Hong Kong as pandemic boosts demand for flexible work arrangements

MilkGarage, which manages a network of shared office facilities under a membership programme now has 28 locations across the city

Co-working space is becoming attractive again ahead of a post-coronavirus era in which more employees split their time between home and office

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The pandemic has created a shift in work habits towards more flexible arrangements sometimes involving co-working spaces. Photo: Nora Tam

Published: 9:30am, 7 Jul 2021Updated: 9:30am, 7 Jul 2021

A network of co-working spaces that people can use with just one membership pass is starting to take shape in Hong Kong after the pandemic boosted demand for remote working arrangements.

MilkGarage, which manages a network of shared office facilities under a membership programme, has just teamed up with another operator with four work spaces in Kowloon, bringing its total locations to 28 across the city. It is keen to find more spaces close to public transport links.

“We will definitely get more than 30 locations by the end of the year and we are trying to spread to as many MTR stations as possible as we see that working from everywhere is no longer a trend, but a fact,” said Wu Fangyu, founder and chief executive of MilkGarage.

With office vacancy rates soaring to a 15-year high of 7.5 per cent, a change in behaviour is under way: co-working space is becoming attractive again as firms eschew offices that cost tens of millions of dollars in annual rent for flexible arrangements during the post-coronavirus era that include a mix of working from home and working in the office.

Founded in 2019, the network began when the shared office space sector in Hong Kong had just passed its peak growth period between 2016 and 2018.

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