While I completely agree with Alex that walking in to a bank with financial statements that show revenue already coming in is far better than going into a bank with an idea, a business plan should be used a tool by business owners. I am not sure about Alex's business/startup experiences, but as someone who has started a number of ventures from scratch I have found having a basic business plan (just in bullet point format for my own and partner reference) to be very beneficial, especially when you have partners. You might be able to "wing it" by chance or because you have the right connections, but if you don't have connections on your side, basic preparation is key no matter what business you want to start.
There isn't just one exact model for a coworking space or any business idea out there, there are multiple and every situation will likely be different. I am not suggestion you violate the notion that a coworking space is about the people - not at all. Each market (in this case physical location and target audience) has slightly different needs (i.e. in larger cities people might be willing to travel 20 miles to a coworking space - in a small college town that would NEVER fly without anything *very* different about the offering, I don't know what though?). Also while the target markets for all coworking spaces might seem to be the exact same in every location, I don't think that is true. For example, I know in some areas there are large numbers of tech freelancers (e.g. SF bay area and Raleigh-Durham both places I have lived and worked in before - not to mention Boston, DC metro, etc), whereas in other areas the types of freelancers will be less tech more professionally oriented (e.g. architects, lawyers, designers, etc.). Having a plan to target the specific target audiences that are relevant to your area is definitely a good idea. It helps you think through things like "who do I really want to attract to my space to make it a better experience for all involved", which creates a better overall ambiance and will be the backbone of your longer-term success. Home grown spaces can work, in fact, many on this list have proved it can work. However, that does not mean planning and preparation don't go a long way too. I use business plans as a tool for organizing my thoughts and addressing potential pitfalls before they show up. Since leaving the bay area I have steered away from VCs and only occasionally sought loans from banks or private investors, but I now always "write" a business plan if for no one else than for myself. If you are using a business plan this way it doesn't need to suck the soul out of a venture. Best, Susan -- Susan Potter Collective Turf Coworking Urbana, IL USA On Wed, Feb 25, 2009 at 9:19 AM, Alex Hillman <[email protected]>wrote: > Trevor, > Stop right there: > You don't need a business plan just yet, you need some people. Those people > will be your business plan. > > Yes, you could walk into a bank with a 10 page document explaining how and > what you are going to do with their money...or you could walk in with signed > checks from 10 paying members and say "see, they're already willing to pay > for it". > > Developing the community before you think "business plan" is critical, > because your business plan is likely to NOT jive with the people you're > ultimately trying to reach. > > There are some great recent posts about community development roadmaps, and > I have one that's a little more abstract that I crafted after seeing MILK at > the end of last year: > > > http://www.dangerouslyawesome.com/2008/12/22/a-roadmap-for-community-organization-and-mobilization-harvey-milk/ > > Good luck! > > -Alex > -- > ----- > -- > ----- > Alex Hillman > im always developing something > digital: [email protected] > helpful: www.unstick.me > visual: www.dangerouslyawesome.com > local: www.indyhall.org > > > > > On Tue, Feb 24, 2009 at 4:58 PM, Trevor <[email protected]> wrote: > >> >> Hi everyone, >> >> My name is Trevor I live in Mississauga, Ontario which is very close >> to Toronto for those of you who aren't familiar with the area. I'm >> relatively new to the concept of coworking but I'm so excited that >> this exists. I have been thinking about creating my own space and I >> would like to start preparing a business plan. I don't really know how >> to get started writing a business plan are there any good templates to >> use? Can anyone suggest a good starting place? >> >> >> > > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
