IWG, the owner of the serviced office brand Regus, experienced a surge in revenues to a record £3.34 billion last year, driven by the increasing demand for hybrid working arrangements.
Mark Dixon, the chief executive and founder of IWG, attributed this growth to the shifting preferences of workers, who are now favouring office locations outside of major city centers, closer to where they live.
The company has embraced this trend by focusing on providing flexible office spaces in suburban and smaller town locations. In 2023 alone, IWG opened 37,000 new rooms under a “capital light” model, where landlords provide space in their buildings for IWG to run as serviced offices. Additionally, IWG has capitalized on opportunities presented by the closure of office spaces by its competitors, such as WeWork, taking over approximately 50 vacated buildings.
Despite the challenging economic environment, IWG’s revenue saw a significant increase, reaching £3.34 billion, up 8% from the previous year. The company attributes its appeal to businesses to its ability to help them reduce costs, particularly during tough economic times.
However, IWG reported a widened loss before tax of £189 million last year, compared to £105 million in 2022. This was partly due to one-off charges, including a writedown of landline telephones. Nevertheless, underlying earnings rose by a third to £403 million.
Despite the positive financial performance, IWG remains cautious about the future outlook, citing the volatility of the world. However, the company expressed confidence that efficiencies and cost control measures would help meet earnings forecasts for 2024.
