Coworking spaces are now a household term for a lot of startups or small and medium enterprises. Coworking spaces or shared spaces are thriving in Vietnam in terms of supplying and offering. Looking for a working location for new startups or freelancers is not an easy answer in Vietnam because of the operation cost. Coworking spaces are born to bring to interesting options for employers and freelancers. The article will help you know further about the coworking space in Vietnam.
Coworking space for whom?
Are coworking spaces different from the traditional office? YES. When you step into coworking spaces, you will smell the taste of coffee in the air, see highly focusing people at private desks and excited people sitting around a large shared desk. The culture of coworking spaces may astonish you.
Coworking spaces are essentially a shared space where people work and want to escape from the isolation of a traditional office or a coffee shop. These shared spaces offer office-like amenities that support you to work more efficiently such as hot desks, private meeting rooms, kitchens and so forth.
So who will prefer coworking spaces? When it comes to this question, you can immediately come up with the answer: freelancers, startups and small businesses. It’s true. Freelancers can work in flexible time and schedule without the isolation. Startups take advantage of low-cost hiring fees and lots of conveniences.
Additionally, coworking users are often young, manager levels and tech workers.
The number of female and male coworking users keep quite equal, 46% of female and 54% of male. Besides, according to the chart, the main coworking users are those belonging to Millenials and Gen Z (born from 1980 to 1994 and 1994 until now). They are the dynamic generation who easily catch up with new trends, are good at technology and prefer freedom. Hence, coworking spaces are choices for them to work and unleash their productivity and creativity.
Why coworking space thrive today
Based on an article interviewing co-founders of coworking spaces, published on Harvard Business Review, three substantial factors are pointed out.
First, coworking users see their work as meaningful which indicates that they can bring their whole selves to work. Unlike a traditional office, at coworking spaces, people work for different projects and in different fields. Working amidst people doing different businesses will make coworking users feel their work identity stronger. Moreover, meaning also comes from what coworking users can bring to space. Because people working at shared spaces work in different areas, they have unique sets of skills that they can contribute to helping others in the community.
Second, shared users have more job control. Coworking is accessible 24/7. People can spend their whole day there when the deadline is coming or take a long break at the gym in the middle of the day. Besides, they can choose whether they would like to work in a quiet place or more interactive space. Therefore, coworking users may show better performance.
Last but not least, shared users may feel part of a community that is opposite when they work alone from home.
What you should consider whether to work at shared spaces
It is obvious that coworking spaces offer you a flexible working schedule, creative and collaborative spaces to work on your project alone or with your team members.
However, a coin has two sides. Coworking spaces may have some drawbacks that make users feel distracted. A high level of privacy can be hard to get at the coworking space. After all, you are in a shared space. Although there are some separate rooms divided by glass walls, freelancers or individual users are out there and they may be distracted by overhearing the phone call.
Furthermore, crowds and commotion are other drawbacks of popular coworking spaces. When you wish to work at a designated desk, but it is occupied, you have to wait for him/her to leave, then use the desk.
In my opinion, if you are a freelancer or a remote worker or are running a startup, the benefits of coworking spaces outweigh the drawbacks. On the other hand, your business, the discussion among team members include sensitive information and require high privacy, you should consider coworking spaces. In case you would like to build and develop your own company culture, definitely coworking spaces are not ideal for you.
Coworking space market in Vietnam
Number of spaces
Coworking spaces are thriving in Vietnam. The demand for hiring shared spaces has grown thanks to the increasing number of Vietnamese freelancers and startups. By the end of 2018, the number of spaces rose to 45, mainly in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, accounting for 56% and 44% respectively.
Pricing
Coworking space rents do not rely on the area of the office yet on the requirement of tenants. The hiring fee of coworking spaces in Vietnam is much lower than that of other spaces in Asian-Pacific and is charged based on the number of seats or desks.
Revenue
Revenue of coworking spaces comes from renting. In addition, sources of revenue include food and beverages, internet connection and consultant service provided to tenants.
It is forecasted that the coworking space in Vietnam will continue to expand. Smaller operators may encounter challenges when foreign investors enter this market, which may lead to an increase in M&A acquisition. The M&A acquisition, hence, will improve the quality of infrastructure and services offered by operators. Tenants are not only startups, freelancers, remote workers but also small foreign firms that want to minimize their costs.
Coworking space location in Vietnam
Coworking spaces are located in metropolitical cities such as Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city. This section will give you some well-known shared spaces in the two big cities. You may come up with some brilliant ideas to open a coworking space if you know and learn some popular spaces in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city.
Coworking space in Hanoi
1. ClickSpace
ClickSpace
ClickSpace makes a deep impression of the atmosphere and rustic design. Shared users work in a French-style villa with a spacious courtyard with lots of shades provided by mango trees. Jason Lusk, a co-founder of ClickSpace, shared that he would like to bring a different feeling, not the sense of faceless people working together in coworking spaces anywhere from Hong Kong to New York and ClickSpace would remind visitors of working in Hanoi. Besides providing shared space, ClickSpace also has an online blog that shares stories of the guests and some tips to work abroad in Vietnam.
2. Moonwork Coworking Space
Moonwork
You will feel completely cozy when working at Moonwork. The coworking space takes advantage of the natural sunlight and uses a lot of plants to boost creativity. Customers working at Moonwork bring in their own meal and refreshments although they will have lunch together in a small communal kitchen. Giang Vu, a co-founder, proudly said that “I want everybody to feel at home. Almost everyone knows each other there.”
3. UP Coworking Space
UP is one of the earliest coworking spaces open in Hanoi. UP’s spacious and modern design looks like offices in San Francisco’s Silicon Valley. The coworking space offers many seating choices - from translucent stools to leather-clad couches, large wooden tables to white round desks. UP is available 24/7 and members can use a variety of amenities such as free use of projectors, Apple TVs and private phone booths.
Coworking space in Ho Chi Minh City
1. DreamPlex Coworking Space
DreamPlex can be considered as the most popular coworking space among expats in HCMC. It is also the most luxurious coworking space which offers sofas to help you have a comfortable nap.
2. The Hive Saigon Coworking Space
The Hive Saigon with beautifully-design decoration and large outdoor space is located at the heart of District 2. This shared space occupies three floors in a newly-built commercial building. The Hive Saigon has other branches across Asia namely Bangkok, Hongkong, and Singapore. If you have a membership card in the Hive Saigon, you can also access other coworking spaces of the Hive when you travel. That is a special thing about the Hive Saigon.
Moreover, the Hive Saigon aims to bring you the best place to work and coworking users are not afraid of paying extra fees when joining the community. It provides skype rooms for private calls, fast internet to work efficiently, free coffee to boost your energy and ergonomic chairs to keep you comfortable all day long.
Besides, you can look for further information related to FDI guide in Vietnam. To sum up, coworking spaces are gaining popularity among Vietnamese youngsters, especially Millennials and Gen Z. Coworking spaces attract many freelancers, remote workers, and startups or SMEs because of their flexible schedule, convenient amenities, and home-like zones. It is predicted that coworking spaces will continue to expand and attract a large number of foreign investors which leads to the M&A acquisition in the market. Viettonkin hopes that the article is helpful to you and let us know if you would like to be assisted in Vietnamese regulations.
