The new economy has produced a unique breed of workers with unique needs. With a new approach to both work style and lifestyle, today’s freelancers, consultants, and start-ups are inherently mobile and have a desire to collaborate and conduct business without being tied to a permanent office. WeWork answered this need and has quickly grown into one of the nation’s most innovative coworking spaces. Following the great success in New York’s MeatPacking district, we recognized the same opportunity in San Francisco.

San Francisco’s Mid-Market was an intriguing, but unproven, location. The Golden Gate Theater building at 6th & Market was vacant for 20 years and often passed by without a thought by those on their way to another destination. As we spent time carefully studying the neighborhood, what we observed inspired us. We saw that our customers, the independent workers, were completely comfortable in the neighborhood—and we decided that it was the perfect space for WeWork. We purchased the building and turned it into a unique coworking space with great views of the iconic Ferry Building at the Embarcadero, and amenities like micro-roasted coffee, weekly events, and more.

Today, a vacant theater that long ago housed costumes and creative performances is now a WeWork space with 500-600 people surging through at any moment. As one of the first buildings to open in the Mid-Market, it activated and energized the district and paved the way for even more revitalization in the area, where creativity and the community can once again thrive.