Move over, WeWork. There’s a new coworking space in town: Hooters.
You read that right.
A Hooters in Tokyo has joined forces with Spacee, an app that helps people rent work spaces on a short-term basis. The partnership will rent seats at Hooters to individuals looking to hot-desk, providing a new revenue stream for Hooters during the less-busy period between 1 p.m. And 7 p.m. Space can be rented in 50-yen (47-cent) half-hour blocks. That means renting a desk for all six hours for a whole month would be around $60, which is a lot less than you’d pay at WeWork.
As the economy digitizes and casual, part-time, and remote work becomes more common, co-working and hot-desking is becoming increasingly common. It’s big business. In July 2017, WeWork, arguably the best-known co-working space company with locations around the globe, was valued at $20 billion. By the end of 2017, the company was the biggest private tenant in London.
WeWork offers chic design, a range of working spaces, and perks like free coffee and beer, but it doesn’t come cheap. Their entry-level plan is $200 a month for a hot desk. Hooters may not offer free yoga classes or wheatgrass on tap, but it’s a third of the price, and there’s a discount on drinks.