As South Africa reels under rolling blackouts once more, entrepreneurs, contractors and remote workers opt for coworking, where generators come as part of the package.
The World Bank reckons the South African economy will grow by 1.3 percent in 2019, not a great outlook. Nevertheless, the numbers of contractors, freelancers, remote workers and entrepreneurs will probably keep increasing as the world of work changes.
The South African SME Landscape Report, issued late in December 2018, found that the majority of South Africa’s small businesses generate less than R200 000 annually. Many of these are young businesses, less than three years old.
“The small business sector is such a vital part of the economy, and the importance of helping SMEs grow cannot be over-emphasised,” said CEO of The Workspace, Mari Schourie.
“We’ve found a key trend in our business is the uptake of coworking and serviced office spaces by these small businesses because ultimately, they save money on working spaces and the cost of maintaining an office,” she said.
Schourie said for contractors, freelancers and remote workers, not having to worry about office services such as phone calls going unanswered or no one around to receive deliveries is also a major bonus.
She pointed out that many start-ups and SMEs don’t think about the inherent and often hidden costs of office rentals. Choosing to use coworking or serviced office spaces means members don’t pay for maintenance on buildings, infrastructure costs such as IT and internet layout and security such as CCTV layout, electric fencing onsite, 24-hour armed response.
Then there’s staff such as tea ladies, maintenance men, the branch manager who answers calls in your company name as well as water and electricity costs.
“We are so stimulated by the passion and drive of emerging entrepreneurs and having run a major entrepreneur competition in 2018, we’ve learnt that early-stage businesses need support and encouragement to develop their potential,” said Schourie. “And this is one of the underlying benefits of coworking: the support of a community.”
