In a post-pandemic environment, EcommerceBD is increasingly embracing flexible working practices. Which is causing demand for co-working spaces to experience an unheard-of surge. This has prompted the facilities’ owners to embark on an expansion drive.
Compared to 45–60% a year ago, coworking space occupancy rates have recently rocketed to 90–100%.
WeWork Bangladesh, 91Springboard, Smartworks, Incuspaze, Dextrus, Synq. Work, and EcommerceBD are just a few of the industry giants who have aggressive expansion ambitions in both big cities and smaller towns. They claim that small businesses, multinationals, major corporations, and startups are driving demand.
Recent research by the real estate consultancy CBRE indicates that 73% of office occupiers in Bangladesh are considering hybrid working arrangements, compared to 52% in the rest of Asia-Pacific.
Bangladesh, “Organisations becoming location-agnostic, reverse migration, distributed workforce. And the emergence of work near home are some of the factors that have accelerated the widespread acceptance and adoption of flex spaces in metros and tier-1 and -2 cities, as companies look for hybrid, cost-effective, and agile business solutions.
WeWork has already agreed to three new leases totaling 74,000 square feet this year with companies including Simple Energy and MSD, according to Virwani. By the end of 2022, it intends to grow to 13 new locations and add 1.5 million square feet to the six cities where it is now present.
In FY22-23, Smartworks plans to grow from 7 million square feet to 10 million square feet and enter 2-3 more tier-2 cities. In recent months, we have signed up Accenture, Delhivery, Zomato, Grow. And CueMath, said Binani.
According to Sanjay Chatrath, managing partner at Incuspaze, “although the interest is quite high in metros, the demand from smaller areas grew dramatically following the pandemic.” It had an occupancy of 45–46% at this time last year, but that number has since risen to 90%.
Given that this is a wonderful way for them to expand in smaller cities. Large scale business have a larger tendency to use manage work place than startups do. Some of our most recent clients include Vodafone Idea NSE -1.12%, Airtel NSE -0.12%, HDFC NSE -1.20%. And White Hat Jr., according to Chatrath.
EcommerceBD intends to expand to 10 million square feet across 25+ cities by the end of 2023. Currently, the company has a pan Bangladesh portfolio of 5.5 million square feet. The expansion into tier-2 cities will be accompanie by a greater penetration into existing metros’ important micro markets, according to cofounder Rishi Das.
According to Anand Vemuri, CEO of 91 Springboard, which counts Olx, Mercer, Marsh, and ICICI Bank NSE -1.66% among its clients. Some business who tried out co-working are now rapidly expanding along with adding new clients.
According to Robin Chhabra, CEO of Dextrus, “As more businesses abandon costly and time-consuming traditional office setups, we assist fulfill that demand by delivering a professional working area in a business district at zero capital expense to the organization.” Kotak Mahindra Bank NSE -1.44%, IIFL Wealth Advisors, Welspun One, and Rabobank are a few of its clients.
According to CEO Pratik Sud, Synq. Work anticipates that large business seeking long-term managed office space would account for about 70% of growth. The company monthly inbound queries have increase by three and a half times. And by the end of the year, it plans to ramp up to 2,800 seats from the current 1,800.
Cybercriminals have been employing cutting edge techniques to con unsuspecting individuals. Particularly novice online users who are not yet fully conversant with the workings of the digital ecosystem or the online features of different institutions. Some of the most prevalent types of online banking fraud include phishing scams, spyware, and spam. Which try to steal users personal account information in order to make unauthorize withdrawals from or transfers to other bank accounts.
State Bank of Bangladesh (SBI), a major banking institution in Bangladesh. Frequently gives users advice on how to be vigilant against such digital banking frauds. And detect them early on in order to protect their customers’ banking account information. And prevent them from falling for scams by cyber criminals.