WeWork partners with Saks for in-store working spaces — the "unleasing" has begun

Kombucha tap is running dry… And the WeWork saga continues. Two years ago, WeWork's planned IPO crashed and burned. Then, its controversial founder Adam Neumann stepped down as CEO. This year, WeWork plans to go public by merging with a publicly-traded SPAC called BowX. The merger's expected to value WeWork at $9B — down from $47B in 2019.

• WeWork is a notorious money-loser, and the pandemic WFH life sure didn't help. In the first quarter of this year, WeWork's losses quadrupled to $2.1B.
• WeWork's new leadership is trying to slow the cash-bleed. Part of that new strategy now involves Carrie Bradshaw's favorite department store.

Better than a coffee break... a Gucci break. WeWork is teaming up with Hudson Bay, the company that owns Saks Fifth Avenue, to add co-working spaces to department stores. The first five "SaksWorks" spaces are slated to open next month in NYC. WeWork will operate and staff them in return for a cut of sales. But here's the key part: it won't have to pay rent.

• Old We = Renter: In its rush to grow-at-all-costs, WeWork signed a flurry of leases that could cost it $10B+ in the next four years. And it doesn't even get to keep the real estate.
• New We = Property Manager: WeWork expects to open ~70% of its new spaces under arrangements that avoid leases. Like: the Saks revenue-sharing deal.