IWG Philippines to have at least 50 locations open in 2025

International Workplace Group (IWG), a multinational provider of flexible workspace solutions, on Wednesday said it is set to end the year with at least 50 open locations across the country as it expands its presence in more regions.

According to IWG Philippines country manager Lars Wittig, the company currently is set to increase its locations by at least 17 this year with new locations set to be opened in Pampanga, Cavite, Batangas, and Makati in the first quarter.

The company currently operates 33 locations, after opening three in the last quarter of 2024 — Baguio, Cagayan de Oro, and Mandaluyong. Locations have an average of 200 to 250 seats.

IWG operates several brands in the Philippines, including Regus—a leading global workspace provider—and Spaces, which has a dedicated team overseeing background logistics and services for clients.

Driving the optimism, Wittig said, is the country’s economic growth with the firm receiving nearly 2,000 inquiries and welcoming eight new customers per location every month.

“Modesty aside, I think it’s different to find a growth story bigger than this at the moment in the Philippines. This might be your biggest growth story in the Philippines at the moment,” Wittig told reporters in a briefing in Taguig City.

This comes as Wittig said the Philippines is among the top three markets in the region but did not specify what it ranks.

Wittig said demand has also shifted to flexible working spaces from conventional offices after the global shutdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, with employers seeing the opportunity to rightsize and employees realizing the benefits.

He also noted that being situated in Southeast Asia, the Philippines benefits from interest coming from overseas firms, especially those from Europe who are looking to set up shop in the region.

“With the GDP growth rate and with the many game-changing legislations that have been passed, the question is now why not the Philippines? The Philippines is really the choice we see to a higher and higher degree,” he said.

Philippine economic growth stood at 5.8% in the first three quarters of the year, with the inter-agency Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) targeting a 6.0% to 6.5% range for the full year.

The government has also enacted laws such as the amendments to the Public Service Act, which effectively allows foreigners to fully own public services such as telecommunications, and railways, among others.

It has also mandated the creation of green lanes, which expedites permit and license issuances, as part of efforts to boost the ease of doing business in the country and promote strategic investments.

“It’s approaching 1,000 companies, investors in the Philippines that are now under the so-called registered green lane and that works. Many of those are our customers or are becoming our customers,” Wittig said.

“It’s exactly energy, sustainable energy, telecom, I mean think about it, any industry where they now allow 100% foreign ownership is really growing,” he added.

—VAL, GMA Integrated News