{"id":599822,"date":"2023-06-27T05:33:21","date_gmt":"2023-06-27T12:33:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?post_type=wherenext&#038;p=599822"},"modified":"2024-05-10T05:21:37","modified_gmt":"2024-05-10T12:21:37","slug":"competitive-socializing-and-office-trends","status":"publish","type":"wherenext","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/competitive-socializing-and-office-trends","title":{"rendered":"Community Trends Hold the Key to Repurposing Empty Office Space"},"author":501,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","castos_file_data":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[],"tags":[485772,276882,281,386872,1161],"department":[488812],"wherenext-category":[],"industry":[],"class_list":["post-599822","wherenext","type-wherenext","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tag-foot-traffic","tag-location-analysis","tag-location-intelligence","tag-office","tag-retail","department-emerging-technologies"],"acf":{"short_description":"Innovative uses of empty office space are helping property owners generate new revenue and revitalize pre-pandemic business hubs.","pdf":{"host_remotely":false,"file":"","file_url":""},"flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Business centers that thrived in pre-pandemic days are now losing value. New York City has seen a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerworld.com\/article\/3695581\/after-the-remote-work-rush-vacant-offices-and-empty-downtowns.html\">$453 billion decline<\/a> in office real estate value since 2020, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. But <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/en-us\/location-intelligence\/overview\">location intelligence<\/a>\u2014geographic analysis of foot traffic data psychographics, and other location data\u2014may help property owners and business leaders fill vacancies in the hybrid-work era."},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","layout":"standard","image_reference":null,"image_reference_figure":"","spotlight_image":null,"section_title":"","spotlight_name":"","position":"Left","content":"<strong>Article snapshot:<\/strong> Office utilization is down in central business districts, creating space for new business ideas. Location analysis can match business concepts to the communities where they will succeed.","snippet":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Amid office downsizing and economic uncertainty, some developers and corporate real estate firms are adopting mixed-use strategies\u2014combining offices, entertainment, and retail in one complex, for example. The goal is to read the signals that reveal a community\u2019s needs, generate new revenue, and help revitalize downtown neighborhoods.\r\n<h3><strong>Where Behavior Reveals Opportunity for Competitive Socializing <\/strong><\/h3>\r\nIn some communities in the US and UK, competitive socializing is gaining traction with the professional crowd. Combining elements of team building and happy hour, competitive socializing has grown by 386 percent since 2021, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cushmanwakefield.com\/en\/insights\/the-edge\/from-putt-to-pint-everyone-wins-with-competitive-socializing\">Cushman &amp; Wakefield<\/a>, a global leader in real estate services.\r\n\r\nCompanies like Puttshack, Swingers, and Chicken N Pickle create unique experiences by offering competitive games\u2014mini golf, darts, or pickleball\u2014alongside high-end food and drinks. Landlords taking on these leases are filling large amounts of space, giving locals fresh entertainment, and attracting foot traffic to nearby retailers. When business professionals post about the competitive outings on TikTok or Instagram, they might even create FOMO among remote colleagues, drawing them to the office for the next social event.\r\n\r\nBeyond social gaming, some business districts have heard calls for office conversions to address the global housing crisis, with advocates eyeing vacant buildings as new living space. Cities in Texas <a href=\"https:\/\/www.texasmonthly.com\/news-politics\/downtown-offices-apartments-conversions\/\">are adopting the idea<\/a>, but it\u2019s not always a straightforward solution for bringing people back to cities, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.propmodo.com\/vacant-office-buildings-are-being-converted-for-non-housing-purposes-too\">nor financially feasible for all property owners<\/a>.\r\n\r\nA potentially less costly trend for filling office spaces involves private gyms for personal trainers and their clients. A recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2022\/12\/27\/business\/office-space-glut-reuse.html\"><em>New York Times<\/em> article<\/a> highlighted Canadian company Silofit, which opened several such locations in Miami. Landlords are also getting creative by leasing to educational institutions, wellness centers, life science organizations, self-storage companies, and production studios. In New York City, some offices have been repurposed as film sets.\r\n<h3><strong>Finding the Right Niche<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nTransforming vacant office space into diverse business concepts can both strengthen demand for nearby office space and create greater resilience during downturns, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.brookings.edu\/research\/myths-about-converting-offices-into-housing-and-what-can-really-revitalize-downtowns\/\">Brookings<\/a> reports.\r\n\r\nTo find the right concepts, some property owners, corporate leaders, and entrepreneurs are using geographic information system (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/en-us\/what-is-gis\/overview\">GIS<\/a>) technology to perform location analysis. By analyzing data on foot traffic, demographics, and psychographics, GIS reveals population characteristics\u2014from age, income, and household size to interests, values, and behaviors\u2014in large communities or on a single city block.\r\n\r\nAs noted in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/spotting-new-business-opportunities\/\">recent <em>WhereNext<\/em> article<\/a>:"},{"acf_fc_layout":"blockquote","content":"Businesses are using location intelligence generated by GIS to reveal changing customer interests in certain locations. A GIS analyst can cull data on foot traffic patterns, for instance, to discern the demographics and psychographics of people who frequent the area. Product- or service-based businesses have used that insight to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/carhartt-omnichannel-success\/\">establish new locations<\/a>, plan store merchandise, and dynamically <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/dicks-sporting-goods-strengthens-omnichannel-through-brick-and-mortar-planning\/\">shift pickup and delivery options<\/a>. Now industry leaders are using it to develop entirely new offerings at a pace that matches the market."},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"For instance, a neighborhood where half of residents have disposable income upwards of $100,000 might welcome a luxury spa. A vibrant artist community might be interested in a maker space. Location analysis details whether locals tend to spend on dining experiences, whether they will travel to recreation and entertainment venues, and if they are discount shoppers or typically pay full price.\r\n<h3><strong>Embracing Data-Forward Analysis<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nThe downturn in US commercial real estate, coupled with recent bank failures and higher borrowing costs, have some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2023\/04\/10\/business\/commercial-real-estate-banks-offices\/index.html\">investors and regulators concerned<\/a> about economic weakness. Brookings says office utilization rates are increasing\u2014just very gradually. In the meantime, converting offices to other uses will help landlords pay bills and generate new demand, while opening new business lanes for retail and service businesses.\r\n\r\nThe opportunities can be as diverse as a new podcast studio or mall space converted into an animal shelter. But as every executive knows, the first determinant of business longevity is whether the service or product answers the needs of the location it serves."}],"references":null},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.9 (Yoast SEO v25.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>As Offices Slump, Competitive Socializing, Other Concepts Surge<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Location analysis may reveal how well office conversions\u2014and new concepts like competitive socializing\u2014will work in a business district.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/competitive-socializing-and-office-trends\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" 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