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The pandemic has been brutal for coworking and flexible space. In the second quarter of 2020, U.S. leasing for flex office space was down 45 percent year-over-year, according to CBRE. Case in point, the dramatic rise and fall of WeWork has made headlines for more than a year. NY-based Knotel, which reached a valuation of more than $1B in 2019, filed for bankruptcy on January 31.
The fallout has been severe for female coworking spaces as well. Seattle-based startup The Riveter raised a total of $27.2 million and was lauded as one of Seattle’s most promising startups, but closed all nine of its spaces in May 2020. The Wing, which raised $117.5 million, closed its doors in October 2020 after being pummeled by the pandemic lockdown alongside fallout from reports of LBGTQ and racial inequality.