(Reuters) -Office-sharing startup WeWork reported on Friday a dip in its second-quarter revenue from the prior quarter, as the emergence of the Delta coronavirus variant stoked a slower-than-expected recovery for the first half of the year.
The company, which is backed by Japanese conglomerate SoftBank Group Corp, said the health crisis dampened its expectations for a rebound in average revenue per member, particularly in the United States and Canada, for 2021 and 2022.
The fast-spreading variant and the subsequent tightening of curbs in some places have compounded worries for office space providers, as businesses opt for shorter leases and many employees continue to work remotely.
WeWork said it had 517,000 members in the second quarter ended June 30, a drop from 612,000 in the year-ago period.
The hybrid-work strategy will help improve sales, the company said, adding that it still expects preliminary July revenue to come in at about $215 million, with $650 million to $700 million sales for the third quarter.
In a hybrid workplace model, employees have the ability to work in different spaces, including corporate offices, coworking spaces, public areas and from home.
WeWork in March agreed to go public through a merger with BowX Acquisition Corp, a special purpose acquisition company, in a deal that valued it at $9 billion. SoftBank said it would retain a majority stake in the company after the merger.
Net loss attributable to WeWork was $888.85 million in the second quarter, compared with $863.83 million a year earlier.
Quarterly revenue dipped nearly 1% to $593.48 million from the first quarter.
(Reporting by Sanjana Shivdas in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
