Coworking spaces and Start-ups: Empirical evidence from a product market competition and life cycle perspective

Abstract

This paper is an empirical analysis – based on classic buyer–seller relationship theory – of the spatial relationship between coworking spaces and start-ups in an entrepreneurial ecosystem. We examine the relation between product market competition among coworking spaces and the life-cycle stages of their partnering start-ups, both of which influence the level of trust between the partners. In our hand-collected sample of coworking spaces in Germany’s seven largest cities, our findings indicate that mature start-ups are more likely to partner with coworking spaces in regions where product market competition among the latter is high. The relation between the number of nascent start-ups and product market competition among coworking spaces is found to be hump-shaped, indicating that nascent start-ups are more likely to partner with coworking spaces where market competition is neither too low nor too high. Our findings are corroborated by a European study based on WeWork data.