Moving Beyond Simple Office Subleasing to Connect Demand and Supply with Diverse Services
"FastFive is no longer just a shared office startup." This is the statement from Kim Dae-il, CEO of FastFive. It encapsulates the recent rapid growth of the office platform FastFive. FastFive's revenue increased by 58% in the first half of this year compared to the previous year. What stands out even more is the employment growth rate. Founded in 2015, FastFive has steadily grown each year, establishing itself as a shared office company, but in the past year alone, employment has increased by more than 2400%. We took a closer look at the recent changes that allowed FastFive to dramatically expand its workforce.
According to the innovation venture and startup employment trends announced by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) on the 11th, as of the end of June this year, FastFive employed 328 people. Compared to June last year, this is an increase of 315 employees, with a growth rate of 2423%. In terms of the number of new hires, FastFive is included among the top 10 ventures and startups that increased employment the most over one year according to the MSS employment trend analysis. It ranks first in growth rate.
As of the end of June last year, FastFive operated 25 shared office branches, and now it has expanded to 40 branches. While the number of branches increased by 60%, the workforce grew by 2400%. FastFive explained that the newly hired employees are not only operational staff due to branch expansion but also personnel for new business areas beyond the shared office business.
FastFive is pursuing a strategy to transform from a shared office business model that simply subleases existing office spaces into an ‘office platform company’ that connects suppliers and demanders through various products and services. Office platform businesses such as ‘Mobus’, ‘FiveSpot’, and ‘FiveCloud’ are the key new businesses driving FastFive’s growth. ‘Mobus’, which handles everything from property search to interior design and office management when large companies seek new office spaces, has grown more than tenfold compared to the same period last year. ‘FiveSpot’, a membership service targeting solo freelancers, has surpassed 600 users across 27 branches throughout Seoul. Platform businesses like ‘FiveAdd’ and ‘FiveCloud’, which provide additional services to users, have also grown more than tenfold. This foundation enabled FastFive to record sales of 54.8 billion KRW in the first half of this year, a 58% increase from the previous year.
Accordingly, FastFive plans to increase its branches to 48 within the year, strengthening its existing competitive edge in shared offices while continuing its expansion as an office platform through new businesses. CEO Kim said, "We will evolve into an office platform company that connects suppliers and demanders through space and provides various additional services to the secured membership base."
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