Is coding education becoming coworking’s ‘it’ accessory?

Could it be that coworking and coding school go together like peanut butter and jelly?

Knotel — the network of office locations geared toward companies that have outgrown coworking — announced Monday a partnership with the coworking and coding education company Galvanize. Knotel has two locations in Brooklyn, in Williamsburg and Gowanus. Galvanize, which is headquartered in Denver, opened its first New York location in SoHo this summer.

The news from Knotel comes on the heels of WeWork’s announcement last week of its acquisition of the Flatiron School.

As with WeWork’s acquisition, Knotel’s partnership comes at a precarious time for the coding school industry. Flatiron, for instance, recently paid a $375,000 settlement to the New York Attorney General’s Office for previously operating without a license and publishing misleading information regarding alumni outcomes. Galvanize has faced different business woes of its own: it laid off 37 of its then 350 employees in August.

So what upside does the partnership offer? For Knotel and Galvanize, it appears to be an explicit customer acquisition tactic. Galvanize’s coworking members will be directed to Knotel’s offices as they grow in size, while Knotel will send smaller companies that may be better matched for coworking to Galvanize. Knotel members will also have access to Galvanize’s classes and events.

Knotel has a similar referral agreement with the coworking company Grind, whose previous location at 419 Park Avenue South Knotel took over earlier this year. The new partnership with Galvanize doesn’t interfere with that existing relationship, Eugene Lee, Knotel’s head of property acquisition and business development, told Technical.ly by email. Since Grind and Galvanize’s locations are in different neighborhoods — for now, at least — they don’t directly compete.