Office Evolution Named First in Coworking Spaces Category in Entrepreneur Magazine’s Annual Franchise 500 Ranking

Coworking franchise Office Evolution ranked first in the Coworking Spaces category on Entrepreneur’s 40th annual Franchise 500 list. In another major win for the brand, it ranked #160 overall, jumping nearly 40 spots from its #198 ranking in 2018.

“The ranking speaks to the brand’s consistent improvement over the past couple of years and the industry’s higher profile,” said Office Evolution Founder and CEO Mark Hemmeter.

“We keep moving up — it’s a testament to our franchisees and great corporate team,” Hemmeter said. “The industry is also becoming more mainstream and visible in rankings.”

The jump of 38 spots, from #198 overall to #160 overall, speaks to the brand’s focus on consistency with its recurring revenue membership model.

“We are very consistent at what we do,” Hemmeter said. “We’ve been around for 16 years, and you see lots of franchise brands on the list for one or two years and then they disappear or wildly swing. We’re not like that. Every year, we’re getting better and better at what we do, and that has fueled our growth.”

Office Evolution focuses on giving small business owners affordable, flexible and professional work spaces that weave into the fabric of their communities and are locally-owned with a national network. A key differentiator for the brand is its strategy of attracting long-term clients in entrepreneurs that run small businesses in the legal, real estate, insurance and similar industries. The brand also focuses on expanding and becoming a contributing member of suburban communities, as opposed to big cities, unlike others in the space.

Office Evolution has come a long way since it was founded in 2003. Back then, Hemmeter had to explain the concept of a shared office space to investors. He saw the concept pick up more steam in 2011 and 2012, and the brand began to franchise in 2013. Today, the concept of a flexible workspace/coworking is far more mainstream, and Office Evolution experienced major growth in 2018, the year of its 15th anniversary.

The brand is already off to a strong start in 2019, with a husband-and-wife franchise team having already opened an Office Evolution franchise in Woodbridge Township, New Jersey on January 23. In terms of company culture, the brand prides itself on providing the concept of Ohana, or family, and emphasizes a culture of respect throughout both its corporate team and franchise system.

To view Office Evolution in the full ranking, visit www.entrepreneur.com/franchise500. Results can also be seen in the January/February issue of Entrepreneur. The annual list ranks franchise brands on a variety of factors, including costs and fees, size and growth, support, brand strength and financial strength and stability. Franchise fees, closures, training times, marketing support, litigation, social media and system size are all taken into consideration as well. A total of 1,094 companies supplied the information required for consideration this year, making 2019 one of the most competitive year’s in the coveted ranking’s 40-year history.