You co-founded Green Desk in 2008 and sold it, which led directly to the founding of WeWork. Walk me through how that first business happened.

Adam Neumann
Replied byAdam Neumann

Founder & CEO at WeWork

Niche: Marketplace
Revenue: Not Publicly Disclosed/month
Location: Miami, Florida, USA
Started: 2021

Miguel and I were in the same building. I had a baby clothing company. The landlord kept telling me my business sucked and I told him his real estate sucked because it was all empty. One day he takes me upstairs and asks what I would do with it. I said divide the floor into 15 small spaces, charge one thousand each, put a receptionist. He calls me the next day and says take the whole building. We put five ads on Craigslist and launched Green Desk. It was 92 percent full within a week and cash flow positive within a month. That was new for me. I had never had a business that was cash flow positive. From that we drew the original WeWork sketch on the wall and the vision was never about desks and chairs. It was always a full lifestyle circle. Travel, health, social life, co-workers, life essentials. Create a world where people make a life and not just a living.

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