Updated: March 29, 2022
Ask ACE
Ask ACE: Any advice on joining a coworking space?
By Nicole Ouellette and Carrie Yardley
Q: I’m a freelance service professional. A few months into the COVID shutdown I gave up my office space to work from home. My new neighbor relocated to Maine to work remotely for a business in another state. Both of us are looking for a break and are considering joining a coworking space. What are your thoughts?
ACE Advises: Coworking spaces are like gyms. You pay dues, not rent. Most provide a kitchen, internet, utilities, maintenance, and shared conference rooms. Seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis, but you can often pay for a dedicated desk. Coworking is a way to be around other people, reducing the Zoom Gloom isolation many of us feel.
COVID affected coworking spaces — memberships dropped — and it may take a while to figure out the lasting impact. Interest has picked up; for those who want to get out of the office a few days a week, coworking may be an option.
Nicole Ouellette, owner of AnchorSpace, says, “In my view, coworking spaces will have more ‘seats.’ This doesn’t mean that we’ll all add desks. Rather, it means that we will have more members in the same space, with each member spending fewer days each week.”
Proprietors may look for ways to add value to memberships, such as discount arrangements with local businesses. Or they may choose to add programming, geared to the coworking demographic.
Ouellette agrees, saying, “I operate a coworking space and run a social media and marketing business. As a Maine service business, I’m not right for Top Gun and similar programs for product-based businesses. Like many independents, I need hands-on business education. In the gig economy remote workers are looking into side-hustles but do not know where to start. Programming in coworking space makes sense because the people who need it are already there.”
Nicole Ouellette owns AnchorSpace, with coworking spaces in Bar Harbor and Potsdam, N.Y. She is the founder of Breaking Even Communications, a digital marketing, website management and training firm. She can be reached at nicole@breakingeveninc.com.
Carrie Yardley is a contributing writer to Mainebiz, and ACE’s vice president.
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