VillageOffice

What VillageOffice does

VillageOffice Genossenschaft was a Swiss cooperative founded on February 23, 2016 in Bern, Switzerland, with the stated purpose of bringing workplaces closer to where people live through a network of regional coworking spaces. The cooperative operated from February 2016 until December 31, 2021, when it ceased business activities. Its core offering was a Social Franchise model designed to enable local entrepreneurs and partners to establish coworking spaces throughout Switzerland, with a particular focus on SBB railway stations as anchor locations. The organization did not develop a proprietary technology platform; rather, it functioned as a community-anchored service entity coordinating physical workspace development, member access, and partner relationships.

The business model was built on cooperative membership fees and usage-based revenue from coworking spaces, supplemented by grant funding from Migros Pionierfonds, the Innovationsfonds der Alternativen Bank Schweiz, and Stiftung Mercator Schweiz. Its primary customer segments were remote workers seeking reduced commuting, employers offering flexible work arrangements, and regional municipalities. On June 5, 2020, the cooperative signed a partnership with SBB Immobilien to develop coworking spaces at railway stations nationwide—a key scaling pathway that was abandoned in 2021 when too few SBB sites proved suitable within useful timeframes. The COVID-19 pandemic materially damaged operations by halting collaborative space activities, partially offset by emergency support from Kanton Bern, which was fully repaid.

Upon cessation, ongoing projects were transferred to two commercial spin-offs: CommunityOffice, which provides consulting services to municipalities and real estate owners, and Flesk, a B2B application providing simplified access to flexible workspaces and meeting rooms across Switzerland. In 2022, the collectively developed know-how, partially financed with public funds, was transferred to Coworking Switzerland under a Creative Commons license for public availability. The cooperative was led throughout by co-founders Jenny Schaepperuster and Dave Bruehlmeier, who remained the first and last team members.

Name

VillageOffice

Legal name

VillageOffice Genossenschaft

Website

https://villageoffice.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

VillageOffice Genossenschaft was a Swiss cooperative (2016-2021) headquartered in Bern that developed a Social Franchise model for regional coworking spaces targeting SBB railway stations. The cooperative ceased operations on December 31, 2021, transferring projects to spin-offs CommunityOffice and Flesk.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Bern

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Cooperative Membership and Coworking Services: VillageOffice operated as a Genossenschaft (cooperative) and provided access to coworking spaces for members. The business model was built on collaborative development of regional coworking spaces. As a cooperative, membership fees and usage-based revenue from coworking spaces comprised the core revenue streams. Operations ceased on December 31, 2021.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

VillageOffice Genossenschaft was a Swiss cooperative founded on February 23, 2016 in Bern to bring the workplace closer to where people live by developing regional coworking spaces. It operated a Social Franchise model intended to scale coworking sites across Switzerland, with a particular focus on SBB railway stations in partnership with SBB Immobilien. The cooperative ceased business operations on December 31, 2021, transferring ongoing projects to spin-offs CommunityOffice and Flesk.

Product overview

VillageOffice was a cooperative that operated from 2016 to 2021, dedicated to establishing regional coworking spaces that bring workplaces closer to residential areas. Upon ceasing operations on December 31, 2021, the cooperative's mission continued through three commercial spin-offs: CommunityOffice (providing consulting for municipalities and real estate owners), Flesk (a B2B app for flexible workspaces and meeting rooms), and Coworking Switzerland (which received the shared knowledge under Creative Commons license). The original VillageOffice platform itself was a hybrid model combining a social franchise concept with partnerships (notably with SBB Immobilien) to establish coworking spaces at railway stations across Switzerland.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• VillageOffice Genossenschaft (Cooperative) A Swiss cooperative that developed regional coworking spaces and a Social Franchise model to bring workspaces closer to where people live in Switzerland. Targeted at workers seeking to reduce commuting and at employers supporting workplace flexibility.
• CommunityOffice Commercial spin-off offering consulting services for municipalities and real estate property owners on regional coworking space development.
• Flesk Commercial B2B application providing simplified access to flexible workspaces and meeting rooms throughout Switzerland.
• Coworking Switzerland Organization that received accumulated coworking development know-how from VillageOffice and makes it publicly available under a Creative Commons license.

Quantifiable outcome

• Full repayment of Corona emergency aid to Kanton Bern, demonstrating financial responsibility
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SBB ImmobiliencoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 June 2020VillageOffice signed a partnership with SBB Immobilien (Swiss Federal Railways Real Estate) on June 5, 2020 to develop coworking spaces at SBB railway stations throughout Switzerland. The partnership was a key growth pathway for the Social Franchise model, though it was ultimately abandoned as few SBB locations proved suitable and available within useful timeframes.
• CommunityOfficecoreOthersCommercial spin-off that emerged from VillageOffice's closure, providing consulting services to communes and real estate owners. VillageOffice transferred ongoing projects to CommunityOffice on December 31, 2021.
• FleskcoreOthersCommercial B2B spin-off providing an app for simplified access to flexible workspaces and meeting rooms throughout Switzerland. VillageOffice transferred ongoing projects to Flesk on December 31, 2021.
• Coworking SwitzerlandminorOthersVillageOffice transferred its accumulated know-how, developed partly with public funds, to Coworking Switzerland in 2022 under the condition that it be made available to the public under a Creative Commons license.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Industrious: Premium flexible-workspace operator offering enterprise-grade coworking and suite rentals across North America, Europe, and Asia. Comparable to VillageOffice's flexible-workspace offering, but serving a broader corporate clientele at significantly larger scale.
• IWG (Regus): Parent of Regus, Spaces, and other flexible-workspace brands; the world's largest operator of coworking and serviced offices. Overlaps with VillageOffice's core offering of flexible workspace access, but operates at vastly greater scale and commercial orientation.
• WeWork: Global coworking brand that pioneered the modern flexible-workspace category. Highly comparable in core offering (membership-based access to coworking spaces), but operates as a large commercial enterprise rather than a values-driven cooperative.
• The Office Group (TOG): UK-based flexible-workspace operator offering coworking, serviced offices, and meeting rooms across European cities. Comparable in flexible-workspace offering and recurring-revenue model, though at operational scale and geographic breadth far exceeding VillageOffice.

Direct peers

• Mindspace: European flex-office brand operating premium coworking spaces across multiple countries, with strong presence in DACH-region cities. Comparable to VillageOffice in targeting corporate and SMB tenants seeking flexible workspace, though at much larger scale.
• CommunityOffice: Commercial spin-off of VillageOffice that provides consulting services to communes and real estate owners on developing coworking spaces. It is the direct successor entity for VillageOffice's municipality-facing activities and is most directly comparable in mission, geography, and customer base.
• Coworking Switzerland: Swiss national coworking association that received VillageOffice's collectively developed know-how under a Creative Commons license in 2022. It operates in the same Swiss market and coworking category, with a comparable community-development mission.
• Impact Hub: Global coworking network with a social-impact mission that explicitly prioritizes community and changemaker outcomes over pure commercial returns. Its member-based, mission-aligned operating model is highly analogous to VillageOffice's cooperative structure and decentralized-work thesis.
• Flesk: Commercial B2B spin-off of VillageOffice offering an app for simplified access to flexible workspaces and meeting rooms across Switzerland. It is the direct digital successor to VillageOffice's flexible-workspace vision, sharing the same geographic market and target employer customer.

Regional players

• WorkBar: US-based coworking operator focused on suburban and secondary-market locations, with an emphasis on work-near-home positioning analogous to VillageOffice's decentralized-work thesis. Comparable in targeting professionals seeking workspace close to home, but operates in a different geography.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/villageoffice
• Facebookfacebook.com/swissvillageoffice
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/10487182

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about VillageOffice