WeWork's free beers, one of the unique characteristics of the company's tranquil period of happiness during its heyday, will now be a thing of the past.
The taps at WeWork will be going dry - permanently - that means no more free booze, including wine, at its North American locations starting February, Business Insider reported.
WeWork does not have kegs in all of its 600-plus locations, but they were the predominant "attractions" at WeWork's earliest outposts, which also happens to be its most successful, according to its financial report in 2019.
The office sharing company, once valued at $47 billion -- and considered as the most valuable startup in the United States - is sobering up months after a bungled stock sale forced out co-founder Adam Neumann and disrupted investor interest in profits-losing startups.
Each of the floors at WeWork's shared offices once had its own beer tap - offering a variety of local brews and even "hard" kombucha -- a fermented, slightly alcoholic black or green tea drink popular for its supposed health benefits.
As a replacement to its bubbly malt beverage, WeWork will offer a host of new non-alcoholic options, like seltzers and brewed coffee.
This decision came as a result of new WeWork boss Marcelo Claure's plan for the business, prompted by a member survey, not as a cost-cutting measure, a WeWork source disclosed.
The loss of free alcohol-laced drinks is in line with an effort by the new WeWork management to enhance the company's reputation.
The good news is: there will still be booze, but only during WeWork "happy hours" and other special occasions, the source said.
Neumann, who left the company with an estimated $1.6 billion in compensation package, once said that he liked how alcohol brings people together.
Sources said Neumann liked tequila, and stocked special company events with boxes of Don Julio 1942, with a price tag of around $110 per bottle.
In 2018, former staff Ruby Anaya filed charges that put the spotlight on alcohol consumption at WeWork, noting its "free beer all day in all offices policy".
Anaya alleged that she had been terminated for revealing sexual assaults during two company events and that her assailants had been too intoxicated from the free beer to have a memory of what happened.
The company denied the allegations, saying it has always been committed to "fostering a supportive and safe workplace." That litigation is still ongoing and is in the discovery phase, the New York State court disclosed.
