Breather is a technology company.
Breather provides coworking desks, meeting rooms, and private offices, allowing users to reserve spaces on-demand in various cities worldwide.
Breather has raised $132.0M across 5 funding rounds.
Breather has raised $132.0M in total across 5 funding rounds.
Breather has raised $132.0M in total across 5 funding rounds.
Breather's investors include Cisco Investments, Conversion Capital, Greylock, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Madrona Ventures, Maveron, Menlo Ventures, Princeville Capital, RRE Ventures, Louis Beryl, Alpine Ventures, Alumni Ventures.
Breather is a Montreal-based technology-enabled provider of flexible workspaces, offering on-demand access to private offices, meeting rooms, and productivity spaces via an app and online platform.[1][2][3] It serves freelancers, remote workers, and enterprises needing short-term spaces without long-term leases, solving the problem of finding quiet, reliable alternatives to coffee shops or crowded offices.[1][5] Originally operating its own network, Breather pivoted post-2020 to a marketplace model after insolvency filings, where users book third-party listed spaces; it was acquired by Industrious in 2021 for key assets.[1][6]
The company raised $122.5 million by 2018, peaking with over 500 spaces in 10 cities, but faced challenges from overspending and COVID-19, leading to a restructured, leaner operation focused on profitability.[1][4][6]
Breather was founded on November 1, 2012, by Julien Smith (CEO initially) and Caterina Rizzi in Montreal, Canada.[1][3] Smith, an author of three books and frequent traveler for speaking events, conceived the idea after struggling to find quiet workspaces in coffee shops during trips; Rizzi, a Concordia University alum (BA '04), identified a gap for freelancers lacking a reliable "third space" beyond home or noisy public spots like locked churches or loud libraries.[1][5]
The company soft-launched in Montreal before expanding to New York City and beyond, achieving early traction with a focus on private, comfortable rooms bookable via app for meetings or focused work—even big firms like Apple and Facebook used it off-site.[1][5] Julien Smith stepped down as CEO in January 2019, replaced by Bryan Murphy, a former eBay executive.[1] By 2020, amid $120 million in spending from raised funds, U.S. and U.K. subsidiaries filed for insolvency to exit 355+ leases, paving the way for Industrious's 2021 asset acquisition and Breather's shift to a listings marketplace.[1][6]
Breather rode the sharing economy wave in prop tech, capitalizing on the pre-2020 rise of freelancing, remote work, and gig economy needs—projected to grow from $15 billion in 2015 to $335 billion by 2025 per PwC—by offering flexible alternatives to rigid offices or subpar cafes.[1][5] Timing aligned with evolving work norms, where meetings shifted off-site and "laptop hobos" demanded private productivity spaces, influencing competitors like WeWork.[5][6]
Market forces like urbanization and digital nomadism favored it initially, but COVID-19 exposed vulnerabilities in physical space demand, forcing a pivot that positioned Breather as a resilient marketplace player amid hybrid work trends.[1][6] It highlighted prop tech's adaptability, influencing the ecosystem by normalizing on-demand workspaces and accelerating consolidations (e.g., Industrious acquisition).[6]
Breather's journey from venture darling to streamlined marketplace underscores prop tech's volatility, but its core app and network provide a foundation for growth in a post-pandemic world favoring flexibility.[1][6] Next steps likely involve expanding third-party listings, AI-enhanced matching, and integrations for hybrid teams, shaped by enduring remote/hybrid trends and economic pressures on long-term leases.[2][3]
As consolidation continues, Breather could evolve influence by powering broader "space-as-a-service" platforms, tying back to its origins: solving the simple need for a quiet, reliable spot to work, now more relevant than ever.[5][6]
Breather has raised $132.0M across 5 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $45.0M Series C in June 2018.