Flex office and vacancy: when densification becomes an opportunity

Flex office: a winning strategy

Flex Office, this is the principle according to which employees no longer have a dedicated office. They settle where they want, when they want. The stated objective is simple: reduce the number of workstations to reduce rented areas, and therefore the costs.

And the movement is massive. According to the Gartner 2025 report, 78% of European companies with more than 500 employees have already institutionalized office sharing. In France, 26% of employees are affected by the flex office today, and this figure could reach 40% by the end of 2026. The average ratio observed? 6 to 7 positions for 10 employees.

The economic impact is immediate. A workstation in France costs on average €11,000 per year according to IDET's 2025 Buzzy Ratios. In Paris, you can easily reach 14,000 to 17,000€. With an average ratio of 7 positions for 10 employees, a company of 100 people directly saves 30 jobs, or potentially 330,000€ per year reinjected into higher-value projects.

And that is only the beginning. Fewer workstations also mean less furniture to maintain, less energy consumption, less surface to clean. The cascading effect on loads is real.

The human impact is just as powerful: But to reduce flex office to a simple financial equation would be to miss the point. Because the real power of flex is what it does to the employee experience.

Imagine a plateau of 100 positions occupied at 40%. Concretely, it gives 60 empty offices every other day. Deserted rows, a Sunday morning atmosphere. The result? A feeling of emptiness that hampers collective energy, gives the impression of a company in decline, and does not encourage anyone to come to the office.

Flex office solves this problem in an elegant way. En concentrating the employees present on a space sized for them, you are recreating positive density: spontaneous exchanges, movement, life. Spaces are meant to be used, not to remain empty.

The Occupancy rate Average office space in France is 35% according to a Measuremen study relayed by M-Work. Even at the peak on Tuesday, you never exceed 63%. The flex office makes it possible to transform these statistics into an advantage: instead of suffering from a half-empty office, you offer a space that is always alive, always adapted to the real number of people present.

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Now, how do you go further with its free surface?

The flex office did its job. Your teams are better installed, your costs per station have fallen, the atmosphere has improved. But there is one thing left on the table: Those square meters that you no longer use.

Because your lease hasn't changed. In France, the 3/6/9 leases involve a firm commitment over periods of 3 years, with 6 months' notice to cancel at each three-year deadline. If you are in the middle of the period, you continue to pay for the entire surface, regardless of whether it is occupied or not.

And on the current market, leaving your lease is not necessarily the best option: demand in Île-de-France fell by 15% in Q1 2026 And the vacancy rate Exceed the 10% according to JLL. Find a buyer quickly? It's complicated.

So instead of letting these spaces cost money, why not make them make money?

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Going further: turning vacancy into revenue through service agreement

This is where flex office gets even smarter. The areas you have freed up are not a problem: they are a loss of revenue.

Forget subletting classical, there is an effective alternative: the service agreement.

It is the provision of premises accompanied by specific benefits (reception, cleaning, WiFi, furniture, security...) and that the price is fixed globally. It is not a subletting. It is a service agreement, which is exempt from real estate law.

In concrete terms, the advantages are considerable:

• No lessor authorization required (unlike subletting)
• Maximum flexibility : notice of ~3 months compared to 6 months for a lease
• You are in total control of your premises and the rules of cohabitation
• No lease rights For the occupier

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Taking action: how Sora supports you

That is exactly the mission of Sora : to help you make your unoccupied offices profitable through the service agreement, without any headaches.

Sora currently operates more than 30,000 m² and 3,000 workstations in Paris. Our approach is simple:

1. We estimate your potential income thanks to our dedicated teams
2. Our network of 500+ specialized agents is in charge of finding companies to occupy your spaces
3. One Workplace Manager dedicated Manage the cohabiting on a daily basis: you don't have to do anything
4. The Sora App platform Gives you real-time monitoring of your income, billing and requests

Businesses like Ledger, Malt or Innovafeed have already integrated Sora into their real estate strategy.

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The flex office has allowed you to work better. It is time to go further and make your freed square meters work.