Louisville co-working company makes Inc. 5000

LOUISVILLE — Office Evolution, a franchisor of co-working space, was named to the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies in the country.

The Louisville company had a three-year sales growth rate of 75 percent, ranking it No. 3,878 overall. The company also ranked No. 353 in the business products and services category and No. 61 in the Denver market.

Office Evolution founder and CEO Mark Hemmeter told BizWest he thought that the company made the prestigious list because it’s been part of a rapidly growing industry of shared office space, and because it applied a franchise model, making it unique in the business.

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“We’re about culture,” Hemmeter said. “Our focus is local small-business owners, and we think the best provider of local small-business services are other small-business owners. We have owners working with owners.”

Office Evolution was founded in 2003, and for its first 10 years, it operated under a traditional corporate-owned store model. But after some R&D and testing, the company started franchising in 2013, and Hemmeter said it’s seen huge nationwide growth since. The company now has 45 franchise licenses in 22 states.

Another benefit to the company’s growth has been focusing on a target market.

“It’s not a trendy target market,” Hemmeter said. “We work with local small businesses that are mature. Lawyers, accountants, financial planners. It’s not the millennials and startup and tech, that’s a different world.”

Being based in the area — the company started in Boulder but has since moved its operations to Louisville — has worked well for Office Evolution.

“Being on the Front Range has been great,” Hemmeter said. “It’s a dynamic market. There’s a big franchising community in Denver. And it’s an easy airport to use.”

Getting to this place of recognition has been a team effort from the franchisees and corporate employees, he said.

Looking ahead, Office Evolution expects to have 60 to 70 locations by the end of next year. And Hemmeter sees the recognition of being on the Inc. 5000 as a way to help get there.

“When you’re a growing company like this, there’s a legitimacy factor,” he said. “To have other people acknowledge what we’re doing, it’s helpful.”