"The solution lies in the existing office space: Nothing is more sustainable than making better use of existing resources."

The office world is traditionally characterized by rigid, long-term rental contracts. The lack of flexibility seems increasingly out of date: organizations and companies are dynamic, the world is dynamic. Just as a communion suit rarely fits perfectly after five, six, seven years, offices are just as unsuitable for changing requirements over time. Why not use an office only when and for as long as it is needed, and only in the size, location and condition in which it is needed? Use instead of owning - the temporary use of a resource is the principle of the sharing economy. Airbnb has shown its potential and disruptive power for overnight stays and Uber for driving services, for example. In offices, however, sharing is still young and little known. The Munich-based startup ShareYourSpace has set out to change this.

 

Briefly introduce yourself and your team to our readers!

ShareYourSpace was founded in 2019 by Christian Ehl, Commerz Real AG, the asset manager of the Commerzbank Group, and me, Tobias Wagner. I am the CEO of the startup.

My background: I studied business administration at the WHU Otto Beisheim School of Management, in France and the USA and received my doctorate from the Faculty of Philosophy at the Institute of Psychology at Friedrich Schiller University. My better-known professional positions: CEO of the TechDax-listed NEMETSCHEK Group, management of AIS Management, supervisory board of BUILTWORLD and Deutsche Finance Group. I am an entrepreneur in the analog and digital world. My area of ​​expertise: Real Estate - Software - Web.

 

How did the idea and concept for the startup come about?

I developed the idea around 10 years ago. On the one hand, I had my first positive experiences as a guest of Airbnb hosts. On the other hand, I was professionally concerned with the question of how and when real estate becomes sustainable. I found elaborately planned new office buildings, often on greenfield sites, to be an unconvincing answer. In fact, it is crucial to reduce soil sealing, reduce traffic and reduce the CO2 footprint per office workplace from the outset. The solution lies in the existing office space: nothing is more sustainable than better use of existing resources. The most sustainable building is the one that is not built. ShareYourSpace is the logical consequence of the combination of the aforementioned spheres.

 

How does your business model work?

When space is booked, we charge the landlord a transaction fee that depends on the booking amount. Using the platform, on the other hand, costs the space provider nothing.

Our platform service is always free of charge for the space tenant.

 

What exactly does your startup do and what is special about your business idea?

We translate the Airbnb principle into the office world by connecting space owners and space seekers with a focus on flexibility. Our mission: Boosting Flexibility + Sustainability In The Office World!

The office market is characterized by rigid, long-term rental contracts. Modern working - project teams, startups, new work, dynamic companies - requires cost-efficient workspaces that are flexible in terms of time and space. The solution? Offices, workstations, conference rooms, meeting spaces, training rooms are usually not occupied 24/7, but are unused on average up to 70% of the time. For example, due to vacancy, part-time work, out-of-office days, too much space. And ready for plug & work.

www.shareyourspace.com is the platform for everyone who wants to offer or book these temporary spaces. Whether a single desk in the middle, an office room or an entire floor. Exclusively or for shared use with others. No matter what time, day or month. Radically digital: On the ShareYourSpace marketplace, registration, advertising, searching, booking and payment are all done online without any media disruption.

ShareYourSpace is not comparable to real estate portals for the brokerage of offices, which traditionally have a long-term rental contract obligation and are mostly dominated by brokers. Contacts are only brokered there, and letting and renting take place outside of the portals. ShareYourSpace is also not a coworking operator that, by its very nature, is limited to certain locations and standardized space products and has to sell them at a comparatively high price. Our idea of ​​an office-as-a-service is much more comprehensive: we want to make space usable in all locations, at all sites, with all equipment and in all sizes. In addition, the more existing offices are used better, the greater the boost for sustainability.

 

Where are you based and why did you choose this location?

With almost 25 million square meters, Munich has the largest inventory of office space in Germany, little and expensive space in the conventional rental offer, dynamic companies from startups to global corporations and a significant traffic problem. Office as a service is therefore needed. We ourselves are a Munich company with an international team, so we are in the right place in the cosmopolitan city with heart.

 

How did you manage to finance the startup? Did you finance everything yourself or did you take on external capital?

So far we have financed the company exclusively from our own resources: funds from the founders and other investors with digital and industry expertise.

 

What were the biggest difficulties and hurdles that you had to overcome on your way to founding the company?

Acquiring the first space and the technical integration of the payment process

 

What are your biggest challenges at the moment?

The two biggest challenges are: increasing awareness and reach and allaying office owners' concerns about third parties in the area.

 

What are you doing to further increase your level of awareness?

We tell a good, immediately understandable story. We are using the strongest possible lever for more sustainability in the real estate industry, a huge, previously unsustainable industry. We are addressing the mega-topic of our time. ShareYourSpace contributes to climate protection. So: become part of our movement, do good. Be sustainable. Be smart. ShareYourSpace!

Interviews like this help to make our cause known.

 

What qualities do you think are most important for being successful in marketing?

Creativity, strong communication skills and credibility

 

What does your current working week look like?

Intensive ????

 

Who are the offices and spaces on offer suitable for?

For anyone who is looking for office space, a workplace or meeting rooms and cannot or does not want to sign long-term rental contracts. Whether you are a startup, a company in transition, a project team or a lone wolf.

These tenants include the self-employed, freelancers, consultants, startups, building communities who want a better alternative to a construction container, training and teaching institutions as well as organizations and companies from small businesses to international corporations who need rooms or representation for outsourced units, field staff or project teams.

 

What do you say to space owners when they ask them why they should use ShareYourSpace?

Offer your non-permanently occupied workspace and earn money with it. Without having to enter into long-term commitments. Maximum flexibility. You are also promoting sustainability. Make money + safe the world!

Be open and interested: Share more than just space. Make contacts. Share resources. Share ideas. Business is social. From tenants and landlords to joint solutions for joint business.

Space providers can also state in their advert which tenants they want (or do not accept), as well as from which areas and industries. The provider therefore has security and control over who moves in with them.

 

What is your current favorite space on the platform?

We already have so many spaces, of course I don't know them all. My favorite workspaces include the Vitra Showroom in Frankfurt am Main, the T-Haus in Triebwerk München, the Office from Hundt Consult in Hamburg the Photo studio by Riess FotoDesign in Garching.

 

Looking back, what would you do differently in the start-up phase?

Be even faster.

 

And where are you going - where do you see yourselves in 5 years?

We will integrate artificial intelligence and connect complementary services, e.g. technical security solutions, but also on the topic of sustainability. Geographically, we want and need to go out into the world. And in 5 years, our slogan will hopefully be part of everyday life for many: Be sustainable. Be smart. ShareYourSpace!

 

What important recommendations or tips would you give founders and young entrepreneurs?

Be brave, show perseverance, find good partners and, above all, tackle something meaningful!

 

 

Founder interview, June 12, 2020