Coworking Marketing Weekly #61 - A Big Coworking Chain Just Moved In Next Door. Now What?

Hey there,

Rosee from Cobot here!

A WeWork, IWG, or Industrious location just opened down the block.

Your stomach dropped a little. You started doing the math… "How many members could I lose?"

That’s the instinctive reaction. But it’s the wrong conclusion – it’s not bad news.

It feels like a threat, but in reality, it's a moment that forces clarity. And the coworking spaces that handle it well come out stronger.

In fact, a chain opening nearby can actually help your business. It brings attention to coworking in your area. It educates people who have never considered leaving their home office. Some of those people will try the chain, feel like it's not their place, and then start looking for something different.

Make sure that “different” is obvious.

1️⃣ Stop Competing on Product 🛑

The biggest mistake you can make right now is trying to beat the chain at their own game by copying their website style, or trying to compete on amenities and scale.

This is not a fight worth taking on.

Chains win when coworking becomes a commodity. If your space is just desks, meeting rooms, and good coffee, you are competing in their game.

Independent spaces win when they make the decision about identity. The question shifts from "Where should I work?" to "Where do I belong?”

Run a quick check: Look at your website, your social media, your tour script.

Are you describing what you have? Or are you showing what it means to be part of your space?

2️⃣ Make Your Difference Obvious in 10 Seconds 🎯

Most people won't tour both you and the chain. They will compare you online and decide quickly.

"We have a great community" is not a differentiator. Every coworking space says that.

A practical exercise. Write down the names of five members. Next to each name, write down why they joined, what they've gotten out of being here, and what they would say about your space to a friend. Not what you think they would say. Actually ask them.

Now look at your website. Does any of that show up?

If your homepage reads like a product listing (plans, prices, amenities, stock photos), you'll struggle to stand out. Their product listing will usually outcompete you.

What can't be copied: a homepage that says exactly who this space is for, shows real faces, and tells a specific story that only your space could tell.

If your space disappeared tomorrow, would anyone notice? As Bernie J Mitchell put it in our values-driven marketing piece, that’s the real test. If the

answer is unclear, your messaging is too.

If you're not sure how to tell that story, we covered community storytelling with Cat Johnson across a two-part interview.

3️⃣ Build Things Chains Can’t Standardize 🏡

Chains are, by definition, not local. They can put a city name on their Instagram. And yes, they can sponsor a 5K run. But those are campaigns.

You can become part of people’s habits. That’s a much stronger advantage.

👉 If it can be copied across 50 locations, it is not your edge.

Spend one day paying attention. Where do your members go for coffee before they come in? Where do they grab lunch? What do they do after work? Write it down.

Those patterns are your real partnership opportunities. Not a logo swap with a business you found on Google. The café owner who already knows your members by name. The lunch spot where four of your freelancers eat every Thursday. The bar where people end up on Fridays.

Reach out to those places. Not with a pitch. With a “Hey, we share the same people, let's do something together."

That’s how you build something a regional manager with a partnership budget can’t replicate, and it’s exactly how you increase your hyperlocal presence in a way that actually sticks. If you want to go deeper on this, we’ve covered local marketing tactics and collaborations that work in previous editions.

4️⃣ Retention Is Your Real Growth Strategy 🔁

When a chain opens nearby, most spaces panic and focus on getting new

members.

That’s the wrong focus.

Your biggest advantage is the people already in your space. A full space with low churn is one of the hardest things for a competitor to undercut.

An empty space with great marketing is still empty.

Happy members don’t just stay.

They defend you. They vouch for you. They bring your next members in.

That kind of growth cannot be bought.

If you use Cobot, you can track check-ins, membership duration, and booking patterns to spot engagement trends before they become churn.

A member who stops showing up for two weeks is easier to save than one who's already signed a lease somewhere else. See Cobot's Analytics features.

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Coworking Software

Cobot Coworking Software, 2026