WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann at New York’s Fulton Center offices in 2014PHOTO: CASSANDRA GIRALDO FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
When shared-office-space firm WeWork Cos. opened its first location in Manhattan in 2010, it had the market largely to itself.
Today, the co-working business is mushrooming. New locations pop up seemingly weekly in old warehouses and new skyscrapers alike as small and medium-size businesses eschew coffee shops and small offices for the incubator-like workspaces where members share common spaces.
In New York City, there are at least 180 co-working locations, up from about 25 in 2009, according to Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, with WeWork controlling about half the market.