Wework Is Getting Serious About China

Since its entry into China in 2016, WeWork has extended from four to around 60 locations across the country’s megacities like Shanghai, Beijing, and most recently, Shenzhen. That’s one-sixth of WeWork’s 360 locations worldwide. It’s also equivalent to what WeWork has achieved in its early five to six years globally, Sern Hong Yu, regional head of project delivery at WeWork China, said at TechCrunch Shenzhen recently. “Next year, it will be even faster,” he added, without revealing the exact number of offices that will open. The executive confirmed that China will be one of WeWork’s fastest growing region and much of that boom will come from the rising number of enterprise clients. While the coworking titan strives to redefine office spaces for old-school companies, these larger corporations are presumably a more reliable income source than long-shot early-stage startups. But Yu said WeWork is also supporting nascent companies.