IWG Signature and HQ offerings set to meet surging demand for hybrid work solutions

• Global hybrid workspace leader expands across UAE with new workspace offerings in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain

IWG, the world’s leading provider of flexible workspace, is opening a flagship Signature hybrid workspace in Abu Dhabi, and a HQ workspace facility in Al Ain.

The brand, trusted by some of the world’s biggest companies from Airbnb to Uber, Amazon to Netflix, already has a presence in more than 120 countries, with ambitious plans to open   a further 1,000 locations globally over the course of the next year.

Established over 30 years ago, IWG plc has since strived to redefine how people and businesses work. Now, the disruptive company is helping shape the workspace of the future.

Mark Dixon, Global CEO and founder of IWG, says: “We are establishing a stronger and much-needed footprint in the region with two new facilities opening. As a global business hub, Abu Dhabi is a fantastic place for us to boost our expansion plans. And while the world cautiously emerges from the pandemic, the need for high-quality flexible workspaces continues to soar as hybrid working becomes the new normal.

“Our UAE openings come at a time when more and more companies are discovering that flexible working boosts employee happiness and satisfaction, while helping the environment. Our workplace model is also proven to increase productivity and allows for a business to scale up or down - another perfect aspect for the UAE, where SMEs form the largest sector.”

While it might be easy to suggest the pandemic caused a seismic shift in traditional attitudes to the ‘9-5 in the office’ work ethos, Dixon believes it merely accelerated a trend that has been underway for several years, as organisations progressively move towards a ‘hybrid’ way of working: at home, at a local office and occasionally at a corporate HQ. The CEO was one of the earliest proponents of this burgeoning trend.

IWG's research suggests 63% of high growth companies have already adopted a hybrid working model, and its services are used by more than 8 million people worldwide, across thousands of locations, with two million more satisfied clients added in the last year alone.

Locally, a report from property experts JLL suggests that more than half of those surveyed (55% of 40 UAE-based corporate firms) think their way of working will never be the same again. Indeed, JLL expects 30% of office space to be flexible by 2030, up from 5% today.

Responding to the changing face of work, IWG’s Signature brand will now be available to businesses and entrepreneurs of all sizes at the prestigious Al Maqam Tower, on Abu Dhabi Global Market Square, on Al Maryah Island.

In a ten-year agreement with real estate investment group FWS Group Ltd, the 1,842 square metre space within the central business tower is expected to be ready by year end.

FWS spokesman Timur Gazizullin says: "IWG provides some of the world's best hybrid working solutions and we expect their Signature brand will become a great addition to the ADGM infrastructure with its growing office demand."

The Signature brand offers a key to the world's ultimate business locations. IWG selects work environments with a premium look and feel. The prestigious locations enhance your business status, through offering exclusive, yet accessible workspaces in landmark buildings. 

Meanwhile, businesses in Al Ain can soon take advantage of the flexible workspace offered under IWG’s HQ brand, at the city’s Siadah Business Center, on Al Muturad Street, within the Ayla Hotel Building at the heart of the bustling city centre.

The business centre spreads across 591 square metres, and currently offers 31 offices and a meeting room.

A ten-year deal with Siadah Business Center (SBC) marks IWG’s first presence in the city, with SBC owner Manea Ali Manea Mufreh Al Ahbabi saying: “As hybrid working becomes more commonplace, we felt it was the right time to partner with global experts in the field, to ensure our business centre continues to provide the high levels of service and convenience business leaders in Al Ain expect. HQ is a fresh new brand for a new era of hybrid working.”

HQ workspaces are practical spaces where real work gets done. With everything set up and ready-to-go, HQ's offering is fully inclusive for businesses and teams of all shapes and sizes. HQ allows you to focus on business while everything else is taken care of.

Clients using HQ centres are typically entrepreneurs or smaller ventures, ranging from lawyers and real estate developers to traders and freelancers – so the brand is right on target for the entrepreneurial spirit which permeates Al Ain.

IWG’s multi-brand expansion strategy across the Middle East is designed to appeal to every type of business and entrepreneur. IWG creates personal, financial, and strategic value for businesses of every size, from some of the most exciting companies and well-known organizations on the planet, to individuals and the next generation of industry leaders. All of them harness the power of flexible working to increase their productivity, efficiency, agility, and market proximity.