The acquisition of Intelligent Office, the Denver-based coworking franchise, brings Vast Coworking Group’s portfolio to nearly 200 locations.
Vast Coworking Group is working toward being the Marriott of coworking, President Jason Anderson said.
“Part of the goal we had is we saw an opportunity that really didn’t exist in any other sector of franchising that I could see. This industry was primed for franchising, but there was not yet any dominant player,” Anderson said.
Vast acquired Denver-based Intelligent Office, a franchise which offers office and meeting spaces, from Empower Brands. The deal brings Vast’s portfolio to nearly 200 locations among Intelligent Office, Office Evolution and Venture X.
Vast is part of Starpoint Brands, under the United Franchise Group umbrella. UFG CEO Ray Titus founded Vast last year.
Vast Coworking Group President Jason Anderson
“We built a plan to be the Marriott of coworking and the opportunities came up,” Anderson said. Now, Anderson says Vast is the third largest player in the coworking space, following WeWork and Regis.
“Just like Marriott with their acquisition of Starwood—they have 30-plus brands now,” he said. “I don’t think we’ll ever have 30-plus brands, but I think by the end of this year, I definitely feel pretty confident we’ll have one more, possibly two.”
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Vast’s three brands vary in footprint, overall from 2,000 square feet up to 50,000. Intelligent Offers reception services, while Venture X and Office Evolution don’t. The division’s mission is to add on to and further diversify its portfolio, Anderson said.
“We’re looking at things like co-warehousing opportunities that focus on industrial spaces where you can come in and have co-warehousing for ecommerce businesses, local service companies,” he said. This could work as a one-stop shop for businesses that have an office, a warehouse and a fleet of trucks, or something similar, Anderson said. “We’re in talks with several companies in that space.”
The investment required to open an Intelligent Office franchise ranges from $850,848 to $1.8 million. Average unit volume among 56 franchised locations in 2022 was $594,397, according to the brand’s Item 19.
Coworking giant WeWork filed for bankruptcy protection last year, despite at one point being valued around $50 billion, AP News reported. This doesn’t concern Anderson, however. He compared it to the car industry losing Pontiac in 2010.
“That really had no bearing on the vehicle industry,” Anderson said. “It was one player that had overdeveloped or got themselves in trouble, and no other industry would that be indicative of the entire industry. Really, that’s the case for WeWork.”
The coworking space has the demand required to thrive and grow, but WeWork was expanding in “highest-competition, lowest-demand markets,” Anderson. Vast, on the other hand, is builds in the opposite markets, with low competition and high demand.
The future of Vast could also include an international alliance. Anderson compared his idea to the Oneworld Alliance, which includes 13 airlines, where airlines work together to operate flights—like when a customer books through American Airlines and gets on a plane operated by British Airways.
“The airlines are utilizing each other’s regional airline players to the benefit of all the members of that alliance,” Anderson said. “I’ve had about half a dozen international flexible office space operators already agree with the thought process.”
A Vast coworking alliance hasn’t launched, but it’s “definitely in the works,” he said, “which means our 45,000 members will have access to their spaces in Mexico, in France, in Asia, and vice versa.”