As part of our continued mission to make Monday just a bit more bearable for everyone, we opened our newest co-working space in Bermondsey at the beginning of the year. Full of artisan coffee shops, independent brands, cool brunching spots, and, of course, the amazing Borough market, it has been the perfect place to grow our newest Work.Life community. Our amazing Bermondsey Membership Manager, Leanne, reflects on the first two months.
There couldn’t have been a better way to start the new year than with a brand new co-working space in the heart of Bermondsey.
From day one, despite the cold and the rain, things have been buzzing. It has been truly amazing to see how, in such a small space of time, we’ve been able to transform our beautifully designed space into a true community. I’m proud to say that just like our other offices in Camden and London Fields, we’re truly a workspace with soul. Not least because of my (obviously excellent) singing!
I’m often asked about the kind of businesses that we have here in Bermondsey, but the truth is there’s no easy answer to that. We house such a mixture of different companies, people, and areas of expertise: you’ll find everything from humanitarian experts and beauty therapists, to growth marketers, filmmakers, and everything in between.
This diversity of talent means that our members are able to share skills, make new friends, and grow their network in an informal environment, while still making use of the space to get their best work done. Community is something that I’m particularly passionate about, and it’s something that I’m looking forward to fostering more as the months (and years!) go by here.
One of the other great things about the last few months has been the sheer number of interesting, exciting, and downright cool events that we’ve been hosting in the space.
One of the best moments for me was hearing that one of our Local members attended the Trigger Conversations event a few of weeks ago. It was an awesome evening, where chatting to strangers about all kinds of weird and wonderful topics was the whole point. The best bit? There’s no agenda, no secret ‘networking’ ploy, and no end game. It was just about taking some time to meet new people and enjoy good conversations with strangers – something that we so rarely do these days.
I’ve also particularly enjoyed hosting include Rebel Book Club’s monthly evening of book chat and cocktails, as well as two pretty special SoFar Sounds gigs.
It’s great to know people are engaging with, supporting, and enjoying events in the space. We’ve got a really exciting calendar coming up over the next few months, so make sure to keep your eyes peeled!
And yes, while we love our fun events, weekly yoga sessions, breakfasts in the kitchen, and pizza and beer on a Thursday, we haven’t neglected the “Work” part of our name. After all, first and foremost we are a co-WORK-ing space!
Thanks to our Resident members YunoJuno, we’ve been bringing lots of busy freelancers into the space to talk about important issues around freelancing (and yes, that includes the IR35 tax talk!), and have been hosting Enterprise Nation’s monthly meet-up, as well as events like Facebook for Start-Ups, which offers members and non-members alike the opportunity to learn important skills to grow their businesses.
It seems almost surreal how much has happened and how quickly our community has grown in just two months, but there’s so much more to come! Our brand spanking new roof terrace should be ready for the summer, so our members can relax, mingle (and enjoy our pizza and beer nights) on the roof with a spectacular view of the Shard. We’ve got loads of events planned, with a focus on everything from the role of co-working and freelancing to beauty masterclasses, and technical skills workshops.
With more Work.Life locations in the pipeline for this year, we’re looking forward to welcoming Clerkenwell and Reading to our little family, and for all the exciting things to come. I can’t wait to welcome more exciting businesses to our home here in Bermondsey, and to see what the Future of Work has in store for the rest of 2017!
