The co-working industry in Sydney has evolved rapidly over the past decade. From just a handful of collaborative workspaces 10 years ago, there are now 56 co-working spaces across Sydney according to a recent Knight-Frank research report.

The rapid expansion of shared work spaces across Australia has been underpinned by a number of factors. The changing nature of work, advancement in technology, the rise of a sharing economy and changing workforce demographics are the key catalysts driving co-working.

“Co-working is popular because people prefer to socialise and be part of a community,” Kymbal Dunne, Director of Office Leasing at Knight-Frank, said. “Traditional office space and serviced offices tend to segregate their occupants by defining owned spaces. This is not the case in co-working spaces where sharing is the norm.”

Once catering exclusively to start-ups and freelancers, co-working or shared spaces have now become an attractive practical alternative to traditional offices for established companies. Moving away from the origins of traditional hot-desking for freelancers, co-working offerings now also include small and large private offices, dedicated desks, onsite cafeterias, premium meeting spaces and childcare.