In a city of this size, you would expect to be able to walk down the street and see co-working, co-working, co-working, and you don’t see that here. “We also can see it is underdeveloped as compared to other markets we are in. There are generational changes, very interesting economic changes, which are very good signals for us,” says Tedder. He says WeWork, the American co-working company that announced a $2 billion investment from SoftBank (lowered from the original consideration of $16 billion), paved the way for similar enterprises in Tokyo. After launching in Singapore, Saigon, Bangkok, Melbourne and Teipei, Tedder felt the time was finally right to provide a habitat for Tokyo’s burgeoning class of Zuckerbergs and Bezoses. Tedder opened his first co-working space for creatives and entrepreneurs in Hong Kong six years ago. In most of the markets we are in, you are seeing the entrepreneurial sector chipping away at more and more activities that were previously the domain of mid-or large-sized corporations.” Also, you are seeing the rise of the entrepreneur. “You are seeing an increase in larger corporations wanting or valuing flexibility because they see big changes happening to their workforces. “You are seeing two trends,” says Tedder when asked about how global companies are shifting. Lilting ambient music plays as technicians set up the sound system for the swank launch party scheduled for later that evening. The coffee menu offers latte machiatto and poppio. The coffee bar behind Tedder is lined with wine glasses and bottles of One Chain Australian red. O n the opening day of the trendy co-working space The Hive Jinnan, founder Constant Tedder casually lounges in a wooden chair in the spacious communal area of the three-story brick office building overlooking a vibrant Shibuya greenspace. We look at Tokyo’s strengths and weaknesses, and how it needs to change if it wants to reach the number-one spot. Right now Tokyo ranks third on the Global Power City Index, which compares the power of cities with regards to attracting people, capital and enterprise from around the world.
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