An insider’s guide to opening flexspace in Poland

An insider’s guide to opening flexspace in Poland

Jacek Laskowski recently became IWG’s first cluster franchise partner in Poland. With his extensive knowledge of Warsaw, Laskowski is excited about the potential for building a successful franchise operation.

Jacek Laskowski owns and operates L&L Club in Warsaw with his two brothers, Tomasz and Ɓukasz. What started out as a mission to fulfil his father’s dream of opening a tennis club has recently developed into a multi-centre franchise across Poland’s capital city.

After expanding the business into commercial and office properties under the Forest Project brand, the brothers became interested in flexspace and have now signed a deal to open five centres throughout southeastern Warsaw and its suburbs under the Regus brand.

“This is a natural area for us, as we’ve operated and commuted here for as long as we can remember,” says Laskowski. “We know the local business environment and the people living and working here – in short, we have a vast knowledge of this part of Warsaw.”

The centres will be located in the Ursynów and Wilanów districts of Warsaw, as well as Piaseczno and Konstancin on the city’s southeastern suburbs. It’s the first IWG cluster franchise agreement in Poland and gives Laskowski exclusive rights to operate under the Regus brand within these areas. It comes at a time when a rise in hybrid working is pushing up demand for office and coworking spaces in areas outside city centres and closer to people’s homes.

Laskowski explains that they were initially thinking about having one flexspace centre in an office building, and they were planning to open within the next year. But, after talking to the IWG team, they realised there was potential for a much more ambitious project – one that was greater in size and scope.

So they decided to go for five locations and soon began the process of searching for suitable real estate.

But, with their insider knowledge of the city and experience in this sector, why not go it alone instead?

“We did not consider running a flexspace business on our own at all,” reveals Laskowski. “When we analysed the best fits for our current operations, we started looking for a company that has vast experience, as well as comprehensive solutions and tools.”

Indeed, IWG has been running successful workspaces for over 30 years, ever since it founded the industry in 1989, and now boasts around 3,500 centres across the world. Franchise partners, therefore, have invaluable access to the company’s experience and knowledge of the industry and its team works closely with franchisees to offer them the right support for their needs – from identifying locations and fitting out the centre to growing their market footprint – all backed by world-class operational and marketing support, quality customer service and IT infrastructure.

“Entering this market without the support of professionals would be very difficult,” concludes Laskowski. “With IWG, we get the knowledge right away – something that would take us years to learn on our own.”

Looking for a new franchise venture? Learn more about opportunities with IWG.


BACK TO RECENT ARTICLES