Yes, that's also a very interesting point, what happens when the wind changes? My experience is only in the UK and Spain, but price is definitely a weapon for many over here, and having spaces around with hard subsides doesn't seem to help that situation.
I guess is also long term vision/strategy vs quick return, it seems competing in price will fill those desks quicker, but as you have shared many times, it's not just about that. Interesting topic though, I'm sure it'll be on the table more and more in the coming years. On Friday, February 14, 2014 2:14:35 PM UTC, Alex Hillman wrote: > > Can you cite an example? > > Every example that I know of has struggled to build a community and > suffers from high turnover and culture issues. > > Worse, the existence of the subsidized desk share whatevers makes all of > the nearby independent operators panic and do stupid things, which hurts > THEIR business far more than the actual in-market competition does. > > Don't compete on price. Period. Ever. That's an entry in the race to the > bottom. > > I don't care who you *think* your competition is, it's not another > coworking space. Your competition is the living room/home office that > somebody is sitting in right now, lonely and unproductive. Reality check: > the gov't subsidized space doesn't know how to reach them any better than > you do. > > The only good examples I know of are how Gangplank works. More about that > here: > http://gangplankhq.com/2013/10/dangercast-6-gangplank-works-municipal-governments-2/ > > > I think even Gangplank will admit that their model isn't perfect, but it > does a few key things: > > - It focuses on community participation rather than filling desks > - It let's the government stand behind great work in the community, like I > described in my last post > > My main criticism of these subsidy models is sustainability. When the > winds change, and the funding needs to be redirected, will the Coworking > community know how to survive on its own? > > It's a bit like spoiled children who don't know that they're spoiled. > They're useless in the real world and don't know it until it's too late. > > So in general, I take a long view with government subsidies as well. > > A) if the space can't survive without the gov'ts subsidy, it's not > sustainable. > B) if the govt wants to get into the desk rental biz, let 'em. Stick to > what you do and focus on your community. They can't compete with that. > C) like most things, this isn't unique to coworking. > http://dangerouslyawesome.com/2010/12/on-economic-development-centers-and-coworking/ > > > -Alex > > -- > /ah > indyhall.org > betterwork.co > > > On Fri, Feb 14, 2014 at 5:47 AM, Adrian Palacios > <[email protected]<javascript:> > > wrote: > >> Always a delight reading your posts Alex! >> >> I'd be very interested to know what's the general view about cases when >> the government goes even further and sets up a government funded, and >> possibly run, coworking space. We find many places where the subsidies are >> so high that it becomes impossible or very difficult for other spaces to >> grow around them, even when they may be building different communities, >> price is always a big factor for many people. What's the experience in your >> area? Do you think the fact the community is not directly contributing >> financially somehow affects how members perceive being part of that group? >> What about the decision making? In some cases, being funded externally >> means the direction and shaping of the community is no longer in the hands >> of that group of people, do you find this being the case? >> >> Cheers >> >> On Thursday, February 13, 2014 4:48:53 PM UTC, Alex Hillman wrote: >>> >>> So channeling a bit of JFK, my answer to the state level support (and >>> even city level support) is "Ask not what your state can do for you, but >>> what you can do for your state." >>> >>> Here's the thing: cities and states are used to being the provider of >>> incentives and support. Coworking allows for a fundamentally different >>> model where the members of a community that the coworking space serves are >>> the *direct* supporters, rather than funneling things up to the >>> city/state and then back down again. >>> >>> It's true - governments love coworking because it helps them with so >>> many of their goals. It's hard NOT to recognize the value that coworking >>> can bring in the realm of economic development, cultural and creative >>> inspiration, innovation, and more. >>> >>> The thing is that as soon as they get involved, everything slows down. >>> That slow down is by design, mind you. It's their JOB to make things happen >>> slowly, making time to consider a far wider constituency than a single >>> community. I consider that a good thing in general for societies, but not a >>> good thing for the entrepreneur that they aim to support. It's a bit like >>> tying yourself to a boat anchor but pretending it's a rocket ship. >>> >>> Gov't institutions usually won't admit it in public, but behind closed >>> doors nearly every one that I've spoken to agrees that *we* don't need >>> *them*. >>> >>> But that doesn't mean that *they* don't need *us.* >>> >>> They can learn a lot from us. Collaboration isn't something that gov'ts >>> do well, and it's something we do EXCEEDINGLY well. Same thing with >>> innovation, marketing, community building...you get the picture. >>> >>> There's another interesting effect that I've seen: governments are USED >>> to people coming to them asking for things. When you start to have a >>> reputation as someone who doesn't ask for things, it becomes really easy to >>> talk to government people (because they're not immediately on the defense) >>> and it's even easier to stand out from the crowd. >>> >>> Even something as simple as getting a city official to vocally support >>> something can make other things easier. We've been able to accelerate >>> permits for projects and other annoying bureaucratic things because we >>> didn't ask for things when we didn't need it, and instead focused on >>> building relationships with people who work in government and helping *them >>> -* our public servants - *do their job.* >>> >>> It's a fundamentally different approach than people are used to, but >>> it's an approach that I think hits on all 5 of the coworking core values, >>> too. >>> >>> -Alex >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> -- >>> >>> /ah >>> indyhall.org >>> coworking in philadelphia >>> >>> >>> On Tue, Feb 11, 2014 at 7:50 PM, lars hasselblad torres < >>> [email protected]> wrote: >>> >>>> Hello hello! >>>> >>>> We've got great pow up here in the northeast as we watch the >>>> festivities in Sochi - feeling pretty good to be the home of snowboarding >>>> and slopestyle talent right now! Hope all my fellow coworking colleagues >>>> are having a good time with the Olympics too. >>>> >>>> So, again, want to state my thanks for all the help folks here provided >>>> on the development of the coworking guide we put out last year - we've >>>> really seen a spike in interest, with plenty of opportunities to offer >>>> insight and support since the report, "Coworking in Vermont: A Starter >>>> Guide" went up (http://local64.com/coworking). >>>> >>>> And with this success, we have state interest: the Vermont legislature >>>> would really like to do something to help coworking spaces get up and >>>> running. They recognize the value coworking spaces can bring to our >>>> historic downtowns on many levels. >>>> >>>> And I have to confess: I don't entirely know what to tell them. My >>>> story is about bootstrapping, and how the biggest incentive I found would >>>> be the ability to write down ALL my startup expenses for furniture and >>>> equipment year one instead of amortization. BUT since that's not going to >>>> happen... >>>> >>>> Any ideas on state supports or incentives for coworking that could flow >>>> to the entrepreneur, not the landlord or developer (sometimes they are the >>>> same but it seems rare. And there are other state tax credits for historic >>>> buildings, etc). Fishing for ideas and best practices. >>>> >>>> Thank you. Peace - >>>> --- >>>> Lars Hasselblad Torres >>>> local64.com | create + play + share >>>> >>>> Snag our weekly newsletter here: http://ow.ly/gRyRo >>>> >>>> @local64vt | 802-595-0605 >>>> >>>> -- >>>> Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com >>>> --- >>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >>>> Groups "Coworking" group. >>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send >>>> an email to [email protected]. >>>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. >>>> >>> >>> -- >> Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com >> --- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Coworking" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected] <javascript:>. >> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. >> > > -- Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. 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