Forget the Office Gym. Welcome to the Gym Office.

livemint.com:

startups, has raised doubts about its own survival as workers start preferring public space and co-working spaces with lifestyle amenities. Cafes, coffee shops and libraries are often overrun with workers who don’t want to be at home or in the office. There is appetite for co-working spaces that are close to the places workers already frequent and enjoy spending extra time, like they do at gyms, says Bob Chodos, a vice chairman at commercial real-estate firm Newmark Group, who frequently represents tenants in leasing arrangements that include co-working spaces.

“You’re going to see the evolution of the model accommodate people who don’t want to go into the office but still work closer to where they live," he says. Gyms as co-working spaces may not be such a heavy lift. Many employees who have the option to work remotely are coming down from their work-from-home highs.

While they don’t necessarily want to commute to the office, they crave the buzz of more social environments. Damaris Hollingsworth, founder of a five-employee architectural firm, says the monthly cost at her Life Time gym’s co-working space allowed her to grow her business, which she began with $475 a month for one desk in 2020. The total cost of her space now—which includes an office and several desks clustered around it—is $4,000 a month.

Hollingsworth, who designs book stores, coffee shops and mixed-use buildings, says she has pondered renting more traditional office space. But the upfront cost of setting up a similarly tastefully-appointed space with all the audiovisual equipment, conference rooms and full kitchen would be too much. Not to mention, her employees might really miss the gym.