WeWork once promoted a grand vision for transforming the architecture of the workplace, from preserving historically significant buildings to filling offices with custom-designed artwork and furnishings.
The coworking provider, which filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday, accomplished some of its lofty goals. But WeWork’s focus on blazing a trail in design could be costly, an expense that contributed to the stress on its budget.
WeWork has long touted its emphasis on design. One of its co-founders, Miguel McKelvey, is a licensed architect. McKelvey and the company's other co-founder, Adam Neumann, claimed that the heightened focus on workplace design is what set WeWork apart from rivals like IWG’s Regus.
“Everything we do at WeWork should be done with intent and meaning for maximum impact,” Neumann wrote in a 2018 blog post. “This starts with every space for every member and scales to every building in every city.”
A major tactic in WeWork’s design strategy was crafting workspaces out of historic properties that appealed to the younger generations that comprised a large part of its membership. WeWork utilized buildings with both classical and modern designs.
At one point in 2016, a media report estimated that WeWork occupied at least 14 properties in the United States listed on the National Register of Historic Places. David Fano, former chief growth officer at WeWork, told Fast Company magazine in 2016 that the company preferred older properties over trophy buildings.
“We try to find the right economics, the right landlord that’s willing to work with us and the right building that’s got the right bones for our product,” Fano said.
Historic preservation groups praised WeWork’s efforts, though WeWork’s occupancy of these spaces was often brief.
Restore Oregon gave WeWork an award in 2019 for its restoration of the late 19th-century U.S. Customs House in downtown Portland. WeWork occupied the space for about four years before vacating in 2021.
The coworking provider's renovation of 6001 Cass Ave. in Detroit, a building that dates back to the 1920s, was commended by architecture publication Dezeen for “restoring the building to its original splendor and … highlighting the building’s original details.” WeWork closed its office there in October 2022.
The Great Jones building in Houston, which dates to 1908, was renovated by WeWork. It occupied 10 floors there between 2018 and 2021, according to CoStar data.
Modernist design was also important to WeWork. The I.M. Pei-designed 9830 Wilshire Blvd. in Beverly Hills, California, was a WeWork property until it was removed from the company’s website earlier this month. In a May 2021 blog post, WeWork said that it felt “an architectural and design responsibility” to renovate the late 1980s structure, which was once the headquarters for the Creative Artists Agency, a firm representing entertainment and sports talent.
“The goal was both simple and ambitious: To bring this post-modern classic up to date and adapt it to two ever-changing industries — entertainment technology and workplace design,” WeWork said in a blog post.
WeWork’s vision for architecture also extended to new designs. It hired Danish architect Bjarke Ingels in 2018 as chief of architecture. Before WeWork hired him, his firm’s notable designs included the Via 57 West residential building in Manhattan. Ingels departed WeWork in 2020.
The factors behind WeWork’s bankruptcy included high office vacancy rates fueled by the pandemic and an overly aggressive growth plan. But the company’s spending on architectural design services also likely played a role.
Its space at the Interlock in Atlanta was designed with materials “such as fluted glass, stainless steel, anodized metals and concrete," WeWork said in a December 2022 blog post on its website. "White oak millwork integrated throughout the space helps soften that industrial edge.”
When WeWork agreed in 2019 to take 220,000 square feet at Dock 72 at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, it hired Fogarty Finger to design a “slew of community amenities,” according to the Architect’s Newspaper. Those included a health center, basketball court, juice bar and roof deck.
Art was also a key ingredient in the WeWork formula. WeWork commissioned four artists to create murals throughout its Dock 72 office space.
“Art can be used to help give identity to a workspace, especially when we commission and design custom pieces,” WeWork says on its website. “Each custom piece of art at WeWork — from wall murals to large sculptures — is selected by taking into account what its visual context and location would be.”
WeWork did not disclose its expenses specifically for the Dock 72 design project. But a look at its financial reports from the period shows that its spending on architectural services was significant.
WeWork spent $1.4 billion in 2018 on capital expenses which “are primarily for the build-out and design of our workspaces,” covering its entire real estate portfolio, according to a regulatory filing.
Construction and design work on Dock 72 took place in 2018, and the building opened in October 2019. Neumann resigned as WeWork CEO in September 2019 and, later that year, WeWork canceled its initial public stock offering after reporting billions of dollars in losses.