Co-working is reshaping SA Offices: How landlords can win the flex era

• Hybrid work is structural, not temporary; flexible space is now a core demand driver, not a niche.
• The office is evolving, not disappearing – purpose, experience and relevance now define value.
• Landlords who blend flexibility with high-performance space will capture resilient, future-proof demand.

Setting the Scene

‍The office market has crossed a point of no return. Covid-19 accelerated the shift, but it did not create it. What emerged is a permanent reconfiguration of how, where and why people work. Hybrid is no longer a perk; it is the default. Flexibility is no longer experimental; it is strategic.

‍For South African landlords facing rising vacancies, shorter leases and cautious corporate tenants, this shift is not a threat. It is a once-in-a-generation repositioning opportunity.

According to FNB Commercial Property Finance, broker confidence in the commercial sector softened to 40% in late 2025, reflecting slower transactional activity and persistent oversupply in certain office nodes. Yet FNB also expects gradual improvement as interest rates ease and GDP growth edges higher, with demand increasingly favouring smaller, flexible, high-quality space.

Globally, IWG, the world’s largest flexible workspace provider, reports that more than 80% of companies now plan to use flexible space as part of their long-term real estate strategy.

Forbes Advisor in the UK found that 63% of employees work remotely at least some of the time, while Owl Labs’ 2025 State of Hybrid Work shows a growing share of workers unwilling to accept roles without location flexibility.

But this does not mean the office is becoming irrelevant. Scott Thorburn, National Asset Manager at Redefine Properties, says the sector is evolving rather than shrinking.

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“The shift to online work has reshaped how space is used and what it means to businesses. Some companies have reduced their footprints, others have reconfigured them, but most still see value in having a place that brings people together. The role of the office has evolved rather than disappeared. It remains essential for collaboration, connection and culture, which are harder to sustain online.”

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In Thorburn’s view, the office is no longer about scale, but about purpose.

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“The sector is no longer driven by square metres but by the value a space creates for the people who use it. Buildings that integrate sustainability, technology and human experience are setting a new benchmark for productivity and performance. In a world where work can happen anywhere, the spaces that succeed are those that make being there, matter.”

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This philosophy aligns directly with the rise of co-working and flex-space: the office as experience, ecosystem and performance platform rather than static container.

The Surge in co-working – A local reality

‍South Africa is following the same trajectory. In Cape Town alone, the number of co-working locations has multiplied over the past five years, spreading from the CBD into decentralised nodes and lifestyle suburbs. Johannesburg, Durban and secondary cities are seeing similar momentum as professionals prioritise shorter commutes, reliable infrastructure and community over corporate monoliths.

The user base now spans freelancers, start-ups, SMEs, hybrid corporate teams and even large enterprises adopting “hub-and-spoke” strategies. They want plug-and-play environments with meeting rooms, backup power, fibre, security, parking and lifestyle amenities – but also a sense of belonging and culture.

IWG notes that flexible space demand is being driven by three forces: cost optimisation, talent attraction and risk management. Co-working delivers all three while supporting the human connection Thorburn identifies as central to performance.

Strategic Advice for Landlords

1. Design for Purpose, Not Density
   The future office is selective. As Thorburn notes, A- and P-grade buildings that align with modern needs continue to perform, while obsolete stock is left behind. Co-working must be premium in feel, not just flexible in layout.
   
   
2. Create Experience, Not Just Desks
   Productivity today is shaped by light, air, acoustics, wellness, sustainability and technology. Space must actively support how people think, collaborate and recharge.
   
   
3. Plan for Hybrid as Permanent
   Modular layouts, short-term suites, collaboration zones and quiet focus areas should coexist. One-size-fits-all floorplates are a legacy concept.
   
   
4. Anchor in Infrastructure Resilience
   Backup power, fibre redundancy, smart access control and digital security are no longer differentiators; they are fundamental to occupier confidence.
5. Operate Like a Hospitality Brand
   Community management, service quality and brand experience drive retention. Occupancy follows culture.
   
   
6. Ensure Zoning and Compliance Early
   As Nicholas Brodie of SBL Incorporated cautions, municipal compliance, parking ratios and land-use rights can determine project viability and must be addressed upfront.

Key Trends to Watch

• Decentralised Urban Nodes: Growth in suburban and mixed-use co-working hubs.
• Enterprise Flex Adoption: Large corporates using co-working as core infrastructure.
• ESG-Led Demand: Energy efficiency, wellness and green design influencing leasing.
• Purpose-Driven Design: Offices that actively support culture, learning and innovation.
• Performance-Based Space: Value measured by utilisation, engagement and outcomes, not floor area.

The Outlook

‍The office is not disappearing. It is being redefined. As Scott Thorburn observes, the winners will not be the biggest buildings, but the most relevant ones, those that combine sustainability, technology, human experience and flexibility into environments people actively choose to use.

FNB’s market signals, IWG’s global data and the lived reality of hybrid work all confirm the same shift: relevance now trumps scale, and experience now drives value.

For landlords, the path forward is clear. Reposition space around purpose. Embrace co-working and flex models. Design for connection, resilience and performance. In a world where work can happen anywhere, the buildings that thrive will be those that make coming together worth it.

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