In the post-pandemic era, no business can remain traditional anymore. Owing to new technologies and Internet development, more and more companies have set their employees to work from home. Large offices which cause a lot of expenses lose their popularity. They are especially inappropriate for people who work creatively. A lot of creative professionals prefer to work in more convenient environments than offices can provide—from home, coffee shops, or just coworking hubs.
According to recent studies, more than 1.2 million people prefer to work in about 19 thousand coworking spaces all around the world. This number will be growing in the forthcoming years. Coworking leads to more opportunities for development and achieving success. That is why the coworking places for creatives will grow in number to approximately 43,000 by 2025.
For those who are operating their own business in some creative fields, using coworking spaces is ideal. For example, photo retouchers and designers, artists, writers, and podcast developers can make great use of this option feeling as they are a part of a larger creative community full of shared ideas and inspiration.
This article is about how to make a coworking space ideal for the needs of creative professionals based on the experience of the best coworking offices in the world.
Great Examples of Coworking Hubs
There are a lot of forward-thinking and rapidly developing businesses that arrange great coworking spaces for creative people and independent professionals to help them to achieve their true greatness.
1. The Ministry (London, the UK)
This is a stunning shared workplace for artistic and innovative people with four floors of spacious office rooms and two floors of facilities. The place features great opportunities for homegrown talents, interesting events, and mindful talks.
You can also find here a 39-seat cinema, private dining rooms, sound studios, a gym, the longest copper bar in London, an outdoor garden with a coffee bar, a cafe, and a dog-friendly policy.
2. Work at Coco (Minnesota, the USA)
The network of Work at Coco has five locations but the most appropriate for creative work is the one located in Minneapolis. It has been converted from the Minneapolis Grain Exchange and features a great inspiring historical look. Its visitors are freelancers, remote workers, business employees as well as artists, designers, photographers and other creative individuals.
The idea of the place is to bring together work, nightlife, socializing, networking, events, and meetings which could enhance productivity and creativity.
3. Crew Collective Cafe (Montreal, Canada)
Though freelance creatives mostly prefer informal working and socializing in cafes and coffee shops, they are happy to be members of this perfect coworking club. It combines the features of a cafe and office space.
The entrance is free but the membership for regular work in a private meeting room is payable, of course. The brand-new features of advanced technology are also accumulated here—slack channels, online ordering, live-updating menus, and online booking opportunities.
Everything is conveniently located in the original Royal Bank of Canada premises constructed in 1928.
4. The Work Project (Singapore)
The luxury environment that reminds of high-end hotels makes this workspace both beautiful and high-performing. This network of coworking spaces located in Hong Kong and Singapore includes all modern facilities which are of the best quality, very functional, and multi-purpose.
One of the best coworking spaces within the network is located in the Asia Square Tower in Singapore. It covers an area of 41,000 square feet and is famous for its vertical garden landscape. The place is quite inspiring for creative professionals of all kinds who love to spend their work time here, share ideas and find new impressions for their projects.
5. 1909 (Florida, the USA)
This is not just a coworking office. It is a non-profit organization for those who believe that by working together they improve the community.
They provide the space for developing innovations, a mentorship platform where you can find advisors, an accelerator for startups, and the place for interesting events in wellness, arts, music, and technology innovations.
The workspace looks very nice and meets the needs of all kinds of creative people who like to make up something new via mess and imperfections.
6. Tribe (York, the UK)
This place is developed for creative people, innovators in business and entrepreneurship, and developers in different fields of arts and technology. It features a stunning 90s rainbow vibe interior with many types of desks as well as a bike parking lot, free fruit, coffee and biscuits, and all necessary facilities.
You can become a part of this space and a member of the club only if your creative activity is aimed at some social purpose and work for the community.
As you can see, the common characteristic features that unite all these fascinating places are striving for creativity and work for the wider community. So, let’s consider now what an ideal coworking space can be like.
Some Tips for Arranging an Ideal Coworking Space for Creative Professionals
Coworking spaces not just reduce operational costs for businesses but provide great opportunities for creativity, meeting new people from different fields, sharing ideas, and making friends or finding partners for work and life.
So, let’s regard some features of ideal coworking workstations and tips on how to arrange them.
1. A Variety of Sitting Options
You should consider the needs of different kinds of creative professionals who come to the place either to communicate and work together or develop their solo projects in comfort and silence. So, the space should include cafe-style benches around the tables, office chairs or cozy armchairs, pods, desks, booths, and many more.
For more creative clients, such as designers or writers, beanbags, poufs, or hammocks will work perfectly.\
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2. Design Which Inspires
Creative people like beautiful places. Your coworking space should look attractive and aesthetically pleasing. It motivates individuals to become members of your club and spend more time there. A great design in combination with functionality will work wonders by boosting their strive for fresh ideas and innovations.
3. Office Features
Your coworking space should bear some features of a traditional office for more convenience. Make sure that you have provided proper lighting, storage lockers for people’s belongings, a lot of outlets for mobiles, laptops and USBs, a special area with copy machines and printers and all other facilities which are inherent in a comfortable office. The space will look more appealing with these features for a wide range of outsourced employees and freelancers.
4. Coffee and Food
When a person spends the whole day working in one space, they will need snacks, coffee, and water to survive. Self-serve coffee is a good idea as well as a snack bar for any budget of your clients. You can also have a full-time coffee shop with healthy dishes, freshly brewed coffee, and an inviting barista.
5. Working Areas with Different Themes
A coworking space should foster people’s creativity and inspire them for new ideas. Creative professionals often need to change the scenery. That is why consider separate zones for different purposes, for example, a quiet zone, a collaborative area, and something in-between. Design different layouts for each of these types to help people to achieve the best results.
6. Biophilic Components Help Creativity
Shared workspaces look inviting if they have a lot of greenery and house plants in them. Natural textures, materials, and colors can also add a vibe and comfort to them. Their purpose is to make the place cozier which can diminish stress levels, boost productivity, help to concentrate on the problem, and achieve stunning results. A lot of sunlight, earthy colors and hues will help many creative professionals to feel relaxed and produce new ideas.
7. Open Air Working Spaces
The idea of joining workers at a big round table or by sitting comfortably at small tables in one shared space also works perfectly. The coworking office should be the space where creative people can mingle, network, communicate, find advertisers for their podcasts and innovative projects and become a part of a wider coworking culture.
8. Prices Should Be Reasonable
Keep in mind that most businesses and offices are looking for some spaces for their workers to operate with a great reduction of costs. That is why these spaces should not cost a fortune. As for creative individuals, they are striving for some comfortable and affordable working room to help them start developing their projects and then make money for them.
That is why your task is to make your coworking space affordable for these types of professionals. Consider the average monthly costs for a desk on the market. For example, in Europe it is 190 euros, in the UK it ranges approximately between 150 and 170 pounds and in the United States, it is 190-195 dollars on average.
9. Safety Matters
All the businesses, project developers, and creative professionals want their projects and sensitive data to be intact for third parties. That is why observing safety standards is a must, no matter what kind of facilities and applications—either offline or online—people in your coworking office are using. It is better if you have a security officer in the lobby, surveillance cameras, and anti-hacking software. No one will want to rent a coworking space if it is not secure and trustworthy.
10. Think About a Convenient Location
If a person is creative and looks for a convenient place to develop their projects, commuting for a long time is not the feature that seems quite attractive for them. That is why it is wise to find a location for your creative coworking space somewhere in the industrial or business area, relatively close to all transportation options and parking lots, stores, and other facilities that may be required by your clients.
11. Team Building Programmes and Events
This can be optional but you should not underestimate this feature. Creative professionals need to find inspiration somewhere. That is why occasional team-building events and workshops organized in your coworking space can provide them with new food for their mind and make them more productive. Moreover, it is a great chance for most people to find friends, business partners, or just fellow thinkers.
Final Thoughts
Co-working is not just the easiest way for many businesses to reduce operational costs. When it comes to creative professionals, it is a great chance to boost creativity with the help of communication and cooperation with other people.
When you arrange a coworking space for creative people, the factor of socializing, communication, and sharing ideas should be considered.
Have a look at the best examples of famous coworking hubs from all over the world. What they have in common is a stunning creative atmosphere which has found its implementation in their design, characteristic features, types of desks, workplaces, facilities, and recreation options they provide.
Every feature in your coworking space should meet the needs of creative individuals. If it does, your coworking space will become renowned and successful.
The article was written by Thomas Lore, a 25-year old writer. As a creative and diligent freelance blogger, he is always seeking new ways to improve himself.
