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WeWork’s IPO
WeWork冲刺IPO
英文部分选自经济学人20190817期Business版块
WeWork’s IPO
WeWork冲刺IPO
注：共享办公巨头WeWork冲刺IPO，光环之下是否名副其实？-钛媒体官方网站
Risky business
生意有风险
WeWork, a much-ballyhooedproperty firm, unveils its prospectus
“名声在外”的房地产公司WeWork公开招股书
注：
WeWork招股书引热议：（强烈建议阅读）
Far fromthe soulless corporate offices of midtown Manhattan is a door in Greenwich Village wedged between a rowdy saloon and a burrito joint. The steady stream of hipsters and fashionistas passing in front of it is punctuated by professionals in “business casual” outfits with computer tote bags. Inside are stylish workspaces offering fruit-infused water and nitro coffee on tap. In >Younger workers want a more casual place to work, and WeWork helps us with recruitment and retention.”
与曼哈顿城中心无生气的办公楼形成鲜明对比的是，在格林威治村一隅WeWork就挤在喧嚣的酒吧与墨西哥饼小摊之间（此句翻译有待商榷，欢迎大家留言探讨）。潮人和时尚达人不停在门口来往穿梭，不时也有商务打扮的专业人士拎着电脑包进出其中。门里的办公场所装修雅致、可随时提供水果水和氮气咖啡。其中一场会议气氛热烈 – 有的与会者们坐在懒人沙发上，也有人直接席地而坐。WeWork的这片联合办公区域由一家科技巨头承租，该公司的高管表示，这种情景绝不可能在作风老派的科技公司总部出现。他说：“年轻的员工渴望工作环境更加轻松休闲，而正是WeWork提供的办公环境帮我们吸引并且留住了人才。”
注：
1.Far from的熟词僻义：remote from, different from.此处far from 非距离上的远近，而是程度上的对比。
2.为什么说WeWork有灵魂（生气）？
WeWork在对技术进行投资，他们希望用这种方式更好的了解人们使用办公空间的方式。该公司CTO希瓦·拉贾罗曼（Shiva Rajaraman）表示，WeWork的办公空间有点像亚马逊的仓库，但是他们的办公空间更有灵魂。该公司开始使用数据来提升会议室的管理，并且用数据来分析客户的兴趣，从而更好的筹划社区活动。拉贾罗曼表示，他们发现位于布鲁克林和旧金山的WeWork会员更喜欢都市园艺活动。一位来自Flatiron WeWork办公空间的管理人员表示，自从开业以来，他们最大的发现就是这里的人们喜欢坐在房间后部靠近窗户的办公桌边。他说到，这是他们此前没有预料到的事情，他表示人们的这种喜好事实上是非常合理的。
3.水果水：为什么WeWork的水果水颜值这么高？
The We Company (WeWork’s parent), a nine-year-old privately held firm, is controversial. The company’s chic co-working spaces and its flamboyant boss, Adam Neumann, clearly inspire passion among many customers and workers. Japan’s SoftBank has invested over $10bn in the firm, boosting its valuation to $47bn. Equally passionate are its critics, who argue that the firm is worth nothing like that kind of money. They point toiwg, which offers shared offices under the Regus and Spaces brands worldwide and which has a market capitalisation of just $4.5bn (see chart).
The We Company(WeWork的母公司）是一家成立9年的私营公司，颇具争议。公司联合办公场所简约大方、老板亚当·纽曼（Adam Neumann）行事高调（派头十足）。这两个因素无疑是该企业得到众多客户青睐和员工信任的主要原因。日本软银公司已向该公司投资超过100亿美元，将其估值推至470亿美元。同时反对的声音也不绝于耳 — 有人认为WeWork根本不值这么多钱。他们指出，同样作为经营联合办公空间企业，IWG集团在全球范围内拥有两大共享办公空间品牌Regus和Spaces，市值却仅为45亿美元。（见下表）
注：
1.The We Company是WeWork的母公司，WeWork的品牌已调整为The We Company，下辖3条业务线：WeWork、WeLive、WeGrow。
2.空间面积五倍于WeWork的IWG，为何市值不及其十分之一？_
So what is WeWork really worth? At last, investors will get the chance to make up their own minds. On August 14th the company unveiled its financial prospectus, which is expected to lead to a public flotation next month. The disclosures paint a picture of a firm in transition from overhyped property startup to a maturing corporation with diverse clients.
那么WeWork究竟价值几何？投资者最终会用脚投票。8月14日，WeWork公布其招股书，并预计下月上市。招股书描绘了公司宏图: 从被过分夸大的房地产初创型企业向一个拥有多元客户的成熟公司转变。
注：
1. 联合办公企业 WeWork 要上市了，它坚持说自己是科技公司
2.消息称共享办公巨头WeWork计划9月份上市，每小时亏损21.9万美元|WeWork_新浪财经_新浪网
3.WeWork招股书解读：重资产模式下，盈利是最大难题
There are four main areas of concern about WeWork’s viability. The first, and most glaring, is its lack of profits. The firm argues that this is explained by its huge investments needed to secure economies of scale. It says that mature locations are profitable. Revenues doubled during the first half of 2019 to $1.5bn, from $764m during the same period in 2018. Net losses rose more modestly to $905m during the first half of this year, up from $723m (though one-off gains from related-party transactions partly explain this).
但对于WeWork的发展前景仍有四大顾虑。首当其冲的便是盈利不足。对此,公司的解释是这些巨额投资支出是为了确保经济规模。那些早期的成熟地段已实现盈利。2019年上半年营收15亿美元，比2018年的7.64亿美元翻了一番。今年上半年净亏损仅略有上升，从7.23亿美元至9.05亿美元（亏损部分原因由于关联方交易引起的一次性收益）。
The second concern is its obscene valuation. Happily, the firm is diversifying its funding sources. WeWork has reportedly arranged for some $6bn in credit facilities from ten banks, led by JPMorgan Chase, that are tied to the successful completion of itsipo. That gives Mr Neumann a strong incentive to swallow his pride and lower the asking price for its shares.
第二大问题是估值不尽合理。不过值得庆幸的是，公司通过多渠道筹措资金。据报道，WeWork从以摩根大通为首的十家银行获得60亿美元信贷额度– 从而公司才能成功上市。因此，纽曼先生有充分的理由放下身段，降低股票要价。
The third concern is whether a recession will push the company to bankruptcy. This remains a risk, as the firm has taken on $47bn in lease payments but has only $4bn in committed future revenues from customers. Here, it has some hedges. Its leases are typically held in special-purpose entities specific to one property (so a blow-up insulates the parent firm). WeWork has entered into revenue-sharing leases with some landlords, which can offer countercyclical relief. Because it does its own construction, it can slow down the build-out of new offices as it did during London’s Brexit-induced downturn.
第三大顾虑是经济衰退是否会导致公司破产。这仍是一大风险，因为公司已经支付高达470亿美元的租赁费，而可以确定的是，未来从租户手中收回的钱仅有40亿美元。对此WeWork自有其解决之道（对冲）。它通常将一处地产租给经营特别项目的实体公司。（所以一次市场震荡并不会对母公司造成过大影响。）WeWork一直以来与部分房东签订租契合同共享营收，因此在经济不景气的情况下，它的风险也是下降的（租金也会随之下调）。由于施工装修事宜是由WeWork全权掌管，所以它可以适时调整进度。比如在英国脱欧时期，经济低迷，它放缓了改建扩张速度。
More important, some 40% of its memberships are now held by big corporations, up from 20% a couple of years ago. These firms, which range from Amazon tohsbc, have deeper pockets and typically take out multi-year deals. Jeffrey Rayport of Harvard Business School argues that the firm’s combination of low cost, flexibility and thoughtfully curated culture is attractive to big firms: “We have not reinvented office space in 50 years, so WeWork is moving into white space,” he says. “It does make workers happier and more productive.”
更为重要的是，WeWork约40%的会员是大企业客户，而几年前这一数字仅为20％。包括亚马逊和汇丰在内的各大租户财力雄厚，通常签订数年长约。哈佛商学院的杰弗里·雷波特（Jeffrey Rayport）认为较低的租金成本、灵活的办公空间和精心营造的文化氛围这三大要素对大型企业颇具吸引力。雷波特表示：50年来，我们没有改造过办公空间。所以WeWork正踏入全新的领域，让人眼前一亮。它确实让员工更快乐、更有效率。
The final big worry is questionable corporate governance. WeWork will issue multiple classes of shares that give Mr Neumann control with a minority stake. He has a complex relationship with the firm because he leases space to it in buildings he owns, a practice it promises to end. His wife is a “strategic thought partner” and runs an unpromising education arm. Charles Elson, a governance expert at the University of Delaware, warns, “If you start with this culture, you can’t get rid of it.”
最后一项重大顾虑是企业管理层未必可信。WeWork将发行几种不同的股票，因此纽曼先生只掌控少量股份。他与公司的关系也比较复杂，因为公司租用的大楼其实归他所有，公司方面声称会停止这种行为。他的妻子是“策略思考型合伙人”，经营着一家前景并不乐观的教育机构的分支。美国特拉华大学的管理专家查尔斯·埃尔森（Charles Elson）提醒道：“这种坏风气一开始就有的话，后期实在很难消除。”
注：
WeWork CEO 在公司上市前套现超过 7 亿美元
需知：WeWork 的CEO纽曼 虽然只掌握少数股权，但实际上以多数票控制着公司。
Mr Neumann’s claim that his firm will “elevate the world’s consciousness” is plainly silly. Even so, it is wrong to equate WeWork with Regus.cbre, a property-management firm, estimates that the flexible-work niche has experienced “meteoric growth” of 25% in America’s top ten markets in 2018, with similar figures in big cities worldwide. Mr Rayport believes that the firm’s business-model innovations have dramatically enlarged the total addressable market. Still, investing in WeWork remains an act of faith.
纽曼先生称他的公司会“提升世界意识”– 显然这听上去有些愚蠢。尽管如此，将WeWork与房产管理公司Regus,相提并论也很不合理。世邦魏理仕Cbre认为，2018年美国市场份额中，灵活办公环境已“迅速增长”了25%，全球范围内各大城市情况也大都相似。雷波特先生认为，公司的创新商业模式很大程度上扩大了总目标市场。投资WeWork仍是一种信念。
注;act of faith
1.Anactionthatrevealsorprovesone’sreligiousdevotion.Inmysister’sreligion,walkingonhotcoalsisanactoffaith.
2.Anactionthatrevealsorprovesone’sinterestortrustworthiness.Themillionaireinvestorismeetingwithusasanactoffaith,soourpresentationhastobeabsolutelyperfect!
3.Anactionthattestsone’smoralsand/orbeliefs.Leavingyourinfantwithanotherpersonisarealactoffaithwhenyou’reanewmom.
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