At MIPIM 2024, Comet hosted a round table discussion on a subject close to our hearts.
"The office of tomorrow: a low-carbon hotel product?"
To host this round table, we were treated to an XXL cast:
Here is a brief summary of the topics discussed during the round table.
Our offices are undergoing a major metamorphosis. Considered a place to live by some and a source of income for others, this real estate asset is at the heart of the societal, environmental and economic changes that are shaking up our ecosystem.
The growing demand for flexibility, the emergence of hybrid working practices, the search for financial security and energy efficiency... major macro and structural changes require office reorganization and a better match between users' needs and owners' financial imperatives.
Why not draw inspiration from the revolution in the hotel industry to meet these challenges? What if low-carbon requirements became an opportunity for everyone? What if diversification of the office offer benefited users and owners alike?
The future of office real estate is marked by a dual crisis of use and value. This crisis stems not only from a drop in demand for square meters, but also from a crisis in supply, as it no longer meets the daily needs of users. In France, the market is concentrated mainly around the Paris region, where obsolete office real estate no longer meets the new demands of companies and employees. The rise of telecommuting, rising interest rates, environmental concerns and organizational changes accelerated by COVID-19 have amplified a growing disaffection for traditional offices.
Indeed, the gap between the perception and use of office spaces and the real needs of users is glaring. However, a glimmer of hope is slowly beginning to emerge: faced with this observation, companies are slowly beginning to recognize the need to transform their offices into attractive spaces offering a positive and distinctive experience for employees, encouraging them to choose to come to the office rather than being forced to do so.
Competing with other workspaces such as the home or third places, the office is differentiating itself by becoming a place for relationships, organized and designed to encourage collaboration, meetings and socializing. It is no longer just a production space.
To be attractive, tomorrow's office must combine intimacy and community, in the choice of materials, the layout of its spaces and its portfolio of associated services. It's essential to create spaces that combine intimacy and socialization, all in a dynamic atmosphere.
The emergence of a new asset class, "office-hotels", offers a promising solution. These incorporate not only the flexibility of the hotel model, offering short- or long-stay options, but also the sector's service approach to enhance the user experience and make these spaces an element of distinction, and even a tool for retaining talent.
The key to the success of tomorrow's office will lie in the practice of "yield management", by rigorously and flexibly managing the profitability of each square meter. By combining long-stay (leasing), medium-stay (coworking) and short-stay (meetings & events) models, these new real estate assets ensure a real success on both fronts. Not only do they enrich and make more flexible the offer to companies and their employees, but they also diversify the revenues of real estate owners, thereby helping to deristify the financial management of office assets. When it comes to diversifying business models and integrating a portfolio of services, operators such as Comet are the natural choice as ideal partners, veritable development duos and new-generation asset managers.
The "office-hotel" concept focuses on the user experience and owners' profitability needs, developing an enriched base of services and a real guarantee of flexibility. To bring this concept to fruition, making the most of available expertise, it is now clear that operators and owners need to work together right from the start of a project. The former will contribute their knowledge of service animation and short- and medium-term rental models, while the latter will share and apply their expertise in financial management and long-term profitability. Of course, this tandem will benefit from the involvement of users and architects in the conversation, so as to be ever closer to the reality of usage and thus adapt spaces to real needs.
The office of tomorrow therefore depends directly on close collaboration between different professionals in the sector, particularly between property owners and the most innovative operators. This tandem is vital if we are to keep abreast of the constant changes experienced by companies and employees alike, while guaranteeing solid and derisory profitability for spaces. By combining the property management expertise of traditional players with the new services introduced by operators, the creation of more flexible, serviced workspaces focused on the user experience will be both easier and financially attractive.
