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The economic uncertainty triggered by President Donald Trump’s tariff plans is a risk factor for most businesses, but WeWork’s CEO John Santora sees it as a chance to pad his bottom line as the shared office space company claws its way out of bankruptcy.
“With all the uncertainty around tariffs, who’s prepared to commit to a 10- or 15-year lease with $50 [million] or $100 million spend?” Santora said Thursday at Semafor’s World Economy Summit.
Trump’s planned tariff policies are expected to raise the price of most imported goods for American companies at a time when many are encouraging employees to return to the office. But any such mandate may also require spending on office renovations, employee incentives, and new spaces altogether, as some workforces have outgrown their pre-pandemic offices.
“The world business investments are all on a pause right now until you determine what impact [tariffs are] going to have on your company, your supply chain,” Santora said. As a result, companies must continue to fulfill their in-person office requirements without spending on long-term leases. WeWork’s existing clients are extending their leases, new customers are looking for short-term spaces, and Fortune 500 firms want customized offices that don’t require a high cost of capital, he said.
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Santora, a former top executive at real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield, took the helm of WeWork last year. He is working to stabilize the company after its Nov. 2023 bankruptcy, spurred by the pandemic-related spike in remote work and economic downturn. Since then, the once $47 billion startup has significantly pared down its portfolio by renegotiating more than 190 leases and exiting roughly 170 locations. Still, the company’s shared office spaces make up more than 45 million square feet across 37 countries.
WeWork recently partnered with Amazon on office spaces across New York, Mountain View, and Dallas, as the e-commerce company pushes its massive workforce back into the office. WeWork has also capitalized on the artificial intelligence build-out globally, hosting 220 AI firms in its office spaces, Santora said.
The Semafor View
Beijing is facing significant challenges to its economy, but how Chinese officials choose to navigate those risks could look quite different to other countries’ approach. Beijing wants to project influence abroad, and for global companies there is a need to balance supply chain shifts with China’s push into cutting edge technologies.