I’ll cut to the chase on this one. There is a growing community of workers who for various reasons now find themselves in coworking spaces. And someone needs to feed them!

Yes, we can have a think about why the word ‘community’ is often used in this context, we can consider the ideology behind these spaces and we can look at the future flexibility for the workforce - but if someone doesn’t order lunch what’s the point anymore??

Even before Covid coworking sites had already established themselves in cities across the world. In 2018 there were twice as many as in 2015 and then a further 72% growth since 2018. Though there has been a lot of negativity around the relative difficulties faced by WeWork, the upward trend continues at pace and it is predicted that 30% of corporate real estate will be flexible office space by 2030.

So while someone has asked if ‘the novelty of working from home now losing its shine, can Covid breathe new life into shared offices?’ others might say, they are already breathing just fine, thank you very much.

One important change being seen is that coworking spaces are no longer just for the start-ups, the quirky creatives and the self employed. More and more companies are viewing the coworking space in a new light - the Pandemic has let them see that the sprawling head office, with its associated sprawling operational costs, can be reduced significantly. It’s clear that employees can be equally effective (some research points to being more productive) in satellite office spaces. Another benefit is the ability to attract new staff who are looking for more flexibility in their work life.

Large coworking communities are being complemented with smaller independent spaces. Some give businesses whole floors while still accommodating those individuals seeking community with like-minded people and experts in their field.

At this point I know you may be keen for me to engage with and dissect the Coworker Manifesto (you didn’t know there was a Coworker Manifesto did you?!?) but that will be for another time and place (and person!). In summary though, its values, summed up at the annual Global Coworking UnConference (you didn’t know there was an annual Global Coworking UnConference did you?!?) are aspirations of community, collaboration, learning, and sustainability.

Yes, but my aspiration often centers around how we can order the bagels in - what about my sustainability?! I know it doesn’t sound as worthy, but we all know that’s what we were thinking.

Already any coworking website worth its salt has photos of happy millennials seemingly sharing hilarious anecdotes (probably something about collaboration, learning and sustainability) while grabbing their coffee to-go at the kitchenette. However, as people move back to the workplace (and the coworking space) the reason to meet is going to be more significant and a kitchenette isn’t the answer. Co-Working spaces using catering technology will be able to give its members an excellent platform that gets the hospitality right - not just for those members ordering, but with a process which can be managed with minimal fuss by the coworking space managers. When sites have worked hard to curate a high quality of work experience it makes sense to include the basics of ordering food into that environment.

Spoonfed has developed it’s software to make ordering of hospitality from multiple outside vendors manageable by the site operators. Technology in online ordering will bring a comprehensive solution for the coworking spaces. Ask us how.