HqO and Office App join forces in $500m business

Two leading US and European tenant experience platforms are set to merge, with HqO announcing its acquisition of Office App to create a company valued at more than $500m.

HqO said the deal positions it as the dominant global provider of workplace solutions and “one of the most significant proptech companies in the world”.

As a European leader in the area, Office App is used in 20m sq ft of offices across 24 countries. Meanwhile, HqO is active in more than 150m sq ft across eight countries.

Expected to complete in the coming months, the acquisition will give both products access to shared knowledge and technology to accelerate product development.

Chase Garbarino, co-founder and CEO of HqO, said: “HqO is excited to welcome Office App to the HqO family.

“Providing tenant experience solutions that end at the suite door does not offer a truly connected experience for workers. Office App has done a tremendous job of building out a robust ecosystem of solutions tailored to the needs of European landlords and corporate occupiers.

“To that end, we are thrilled to be able to provide our customers a more complete offering with more consultation, higher user engagement rates, and more data.”

Thijs van der Burgt, co-founder and CEO of Office App, said: “The acquisition accelerates our mission to digitally transform workspaces, changing the landscape of the modern office and giving office workers everywhere access to the tools, services, and perks they need to live, work, and be happy.

“Together, we can better serve EMEA landlord and corporate clients, access our combined resources to execute on our short- and long-term strategies, and use our product and vision to support real estate on a global scale.”

HqO’s growth during the pandemic

Earlier this year, HqO raised $60m in Series C funding from investors including Cushman & Wakefield and JLL Spark.

At the time, HqO said it would use the funds to support “rapid growth” in the industry.

But HqO’s growth had already been rapid, rising from 90m sq ft under management to 150m sq ft in less than a year. Revenue had tripled in 12 months, while its headcount doubled – all during the pandemic.

Investors saw the company as playing a substantial role in helping the real estate industry and tenants to adjust to Covid-driven changes.

HqO has also struck several notable deals with new partners in recent months, including Canadian investor Cadillac Fairview, which launched an HqO-operated tenant experience app for its offices based in Canada.

In August, HqO teamed up with food delivery and service platform Ritual to give tenants a food ordering system built into their tenant experience app.