Tesco to open office space in supermarkets amid hybrid working demand

Office workers will now be able to use their local Tesco to work from as the supermarket group launches a new partnership with IWG.

Tesco has said the flexible workspace business will convert excess space at its supermarket stores into office space designed for hybrid working.

It comes amid the continued shift away from traditional city centre offices which was accelerated by the pandemic.

IWG said the partnership will start with a first site at the Tesco Extra store in New Malden, with workspace on the store’s upper mezzanine level being fitted with “12 OpenDesks, 30 co-working spaces and a meeting room”.

The office operator recently launched a new retail-based office-space concept OpenDesks, which it said will provide greater privacy than traditional co-working areas.

Businesses and individuals will be able to use the working space in the New Malden store from mid-May.

Louise Goodland, head of strategic partnerships at Tesco, said: “We are pleased to be working with IWG to offer customers the chance to work more flexibly from their local Tesco.

“We are always looking to serve our customers and communities better and we will be interested to see how they respond to these new opportunities.”

The move is part of IWG’s plans to add 1,000 new locations to its global network in 2022 as the demand for hybrid working accelerates.

Other new locations from the company across south London will include Twickenham, Sutton and the revamped Battersea Power Station, it said.

Mark Dixon, founder and chief executive of IWG, said: “For several decades we have been at the forefront of hybrid work, empowering people to work more productively and conveniently.

“People don’t want to spend hours commuting every day and instead want to live and work in their local communities.

“A Tesco Extra in a suburban location, in the middle of a vibrant local community, is the perfect location for flexible office space.”