How to launch a co-working space

Build a collaborative community and turn your office space into an ideas laboratory

Big business finds safety in numbers – but through co-working, startups can find prosperity in diversity. Almost 200,000 startups have come into being so far this year. With competition heating up in all sectors and a race for space driving up rents, co-working is an increasingly popular and effective way for emerging businesses to build agile networks of connections and collaborators – and save on costs at the same time.

Alice Davies, founder of Wild Folk Coworking and co-author of The Style of Coworking, shows you how to find the right space, for the right terms, and create the right conditions for innovation. Whether you're looking to seed and lease a co-working hub or find a home for your own community, you'll learn how to tailor the interior design to your prospective community and provide the services they'll want – from fibre-optic broadband to free pastries at breakfast. The event also provides a practical introduction to your role as a space manager, teaching you how you can curate a community and nurture an engaging, creative atmosphere that will give your space an unforgettable buzz and an enviable reputation.

This course is for you if...

• You're an entrepreneur or freelancer who wants to build a vibrant co-working space or community
• You're an entrepreneur or landlord wanting to invest in or upgrade office property
• You're a member of group of related enterprises looking for new collaborators and fresh perspectives
• You're a group of freelancers or hot-deskers considering moving into a shared space to save money

Course description

This large-scale seminar covers the practical and curatorial aspects of starting a co-working hub, from the nitty-gritty of finding a suitable property and installing attractive and useful facilities, to assembling, promoting and maintaining a vibrant co-working community. It is particularly well-suited to those working in the creative, media and tech sectors. Topics covered include:

• Startup basics – from idea to launch
• Finding a suitable premises and negotiating the right terms
• Your branding – co-working tone of voice
• How to generate a community that will use the space
• Crowdfunding to fund your hub
• The future of co-working, exploring some of the benefits but also some of negatives
• Your role as host/director/space manager
• Co-working interiors – how to structure a space that will foster collaborative opportunities

Tutor profile

Alice Davies is the founder and director of Wild Folk Coworking, co-author of The Style of Coworking and the creative director of successful agency Alice's Studio. Previously, Alice ran contemporary art workshops in schools and galleries and was the deputy manager for a creative education centre in South London.

Guest speaker profile

Freelance producer Leo Wood is the founder and director of Winkley Street Studios in Bethnal Green, and has previously run several other co-working spaces in east London.

Full course and returns information on the Masterclasses website