(Charlotte Business Journal March 13, 2017)
By Ashley Fahey
Co-working giant WeWork has signed a deal to open its first North Carolina office in the Queen City.
The company will open WeWork Stonewall Station at 615 South College, the speculative office project by Portman Holdings that’s under construction now. WeWork is taking 51,547 real square feet on the eighth and ninth floors of the 370,000-square-foot building, which is expected to deliver in April.
“When we talk about where we want to launch a location, Charlotte makes perfect sense because it’s one of the fastest-growing cities, a ton of people are relocating there and it’s a top place to do business,” said Adam Wacenske, general manager of WeWork’s Southern region. “We want to be where people are living, working and playing.”
The growth in co-working’s popularity is not new to Charlotte or other markets. But WeWork, headquartered in New York, is one of the largest and most well-known co-working operations, with 130 offices in 38 cities around the world. WeWork says more than 15% of its tenants are Fortune 500 companies, underscoring the fact that co-working has grown in appeal beyond tech start-ups.
Wacenske echoed that sentiment, indicating a wide variety of industries take space at WeWork.
“One of our fastest-growing segments are larger enterprise companies,” he said. “You’ll have someone like Microsoft next to someone who was working in their garage yesterday. It’s a cool synergy.”
WeWork Stonewall Station is expected to open by late summer, though Wacenske said he anticipates tours would begin in May. The space includes floor-to-ceiling windows and an outdoor balcony.
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