Re: [Coworking] Coworking Investors?
+1 to Alex Hillman's emails in this thread. Also, often $15-$20K or $80K or whatever the full cost is for buildouts/TI's/tenant improvements can be negotiated into "longer leases" of 5+ years. The building owner keeps all the benefit of having their space built out, and you tell them what you want them to do, then pay them hundreds of thousands of dollars of rent for it over years. It's negotiable. -Alex Linsker, Collective Agency, Portland Oregon On Friday, August 3, 2018, Alex Hillman wrote: > *"...if you need to multiply fast right?"* > > Fast growth isn't *need* in and of itself, it's a choice. > > Once you choose an investor, you DO need to grow. Not the other way > around. > > And everything is a tradeoff. You may be able to grow faster, but at what > cost to you? To your community? To your long term goals? > > Investor money comes with a certain expectation of growth, on a certain > timeline. Your job becomes meeting *those* growth goals. > > Lots of businesses take investment and then run intro trouble because even > though they're profitable and growing they aren't profitable *enough *to > match the investor expectations. That's when they start making decisions to > force that growth...and forcing growth essentially always comes with a > cost. > > Again, this all comes down to control. I hate nothing more than giving up > control over my decisions. Related: this is why I’m a great consultant and > a terrible employee. But I digress. > > The only people I want to answer to are the people I create value for – in > the case of Indy Hall, our community and our team – and to be able to make > decisions that I believe are in the best long term interest of how we serve > the community. > > With an investor, things are peachy if my decisions create value for our > members and our investors. But if I’m in a situation where I have to decide > between creating value for our members OR our investors…you had better > believe I’m going to side with our members and that is going to make for a > very uncomfortable conversation on the investor side. > > So I place a very high value on control over how I make decisions, > especially after seeing how often people find themselves torn between the > interest of their investors and the interest of their community. I actively > avoid anything that clouds my long-term decision making abilities. > > Plus – if you ever do want that you want to grow to a scale where you want > to have investors involved – leverage is magic fairy dust for business > conversations. You’d better believe that it’s a lot easier to find > investors who want to talk to you (and give you good terms) when you > already have a thriving business. It’s way easier to strike a favorable > deal when you don’t show up to the table hungry for a check. > > -Alex > > > -- > *The #1 mistake in community building is doing it by yourself.* > Better Coworkers: http://indyhall.org > Weekly Coworking Tips: http://coworkingweekly.com > My Audiobook: https://theindyhallway.com/ten > > > On Fri, Aug 3, 2018 at 11:13 AM 603 Co-Working <603...@gmail.com> wrote: > >> Hey Alex, Hello from India. >> I have been doing the exact same thing and it really helps. But I have no >> experience with investors, at the end of the day the business can be scaled >> by an Investors money if you need to multiply fast right? >> >> Sincere regards >> Mr. K. G. Kataria >> >> On 03-Aug-2018, at 05:13, Ten Below wrote: >> >> Alex, >> >> Wow. Your insight and pearls of wisdom could not have come at a better >> time. Thank you! >> >> Sincerely, >> Richard >> >> On Thu, Aug 2, 2018 at 3:04 PM, Alex Hillman < >> dangerouslyawes...@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> Hey Heather, >>> >>> Let's start by putting my bias out front: I'll do almost anything to >>> avoid having an "investor" involved, because I place a very high value on >>> control. And not because I'm a control freak...but because I've learned the >>> value/importance of being able to make long term decisions in this >>> business. Investors are essentially business partners that don't work on >>> the business every day. >>> >>> With that in mind, I also view business partnerships like marriages - in >>> fact, they're often *more* difficult to undo than a marriage. Bringing >>> on an investor is like marrying for money. It happens, but it *usually* >>> doesn't end well. >>> >>> I've been where you are, though. Nearly no cash. Banks didn't want to >>> talk to me. Here's what we have done, and had a lot of success with: >>> >>> *1 - Membership drives. *Turn "early signups" into an event. Get your >>> on-board members in the same room as your prospective members and make THAT >>> the day that people sign up. Taking checks in person helps you avoid >>> payment fees (which add up!) but also the collective energy of people >>> signing up can be contagious. Make it a celebration. >>> >>> *2 - "IRL" crowdfunding. *The biggest mistake I see people make with >>> crowdfunding is
Re: [Coworking] Coworking Investors?
*"...if you need to multiply fast right?"* Fast growth isn't *need* in and of itself, it's a choice. Once you choose an investor, you DO need to grow. Not the other way around. And everything is a tradeoff. You may be able to grow faster, but at what cost to you? To your community? To your long term goals? Investor money comes with a certain expectation of growth, on a certain timeline. Your job becomes meeting *those* growth goals. Lots of businesses take investment and then run intro trouble because even though they're profitable and growing they aren't profitable *enough *to match the investor expectations. That's when they start making decisions to force that growth...and forcing growth essentially always comes with a cost. Again, this all comes down to control. I hate nothing more than giving up control over my decisions. Related: this is why I’m a great consultant and a terrible employee. But I digress. The only people I want to answer to are the people I create value for – in the case of Indy Hall, our community and our team – and to be able to make decisions that I believe are in the best long term interest of how we serve the community. With an investor, things are peachy if my decisions create value for our members and our investors. But if I’m in a situation where I have to decide between creating value for our members OR our investors…you had better believe I’m going to side with our members and that is going to make for a very uncomfortable conversation on the investor side. So I place a very high value on control over how I make decisions, especially after seeing how often people find themselves torn between the interest of their investors and the interest of their community. I actively avoid anything that clouds my long-term decision making abilities. Plus – if you ever do want that you want to grow to a scale where you want to have investors involved – leverage is magic fairy dust for business conversations. You’d better believe that it’s a lot easier to find investors who want to talk to you (and give you good terms) when you already have a thriving business. It’s way easier to strike a favorable deal when you don’t show up to the table hungry for a check. -Alex -- *The #1 mistake in community building is doing it by yourself.* Better Coworkers: http://indyhall.org Weekly Coworking Tips: http://coworkingweekly.com My Audiobook: https://theindyhallway.com/ten On Fri, Aug 3, 2018 at 11:13 AM 603 Co-Working <603...@gmail.com> wrote: > Hey Alex, Hello from India. > I have been doing the exact same thing and it really helps. But I have no > experience with investors, at the end of the day the business can be scaled > by an Investors money if you need to multiply fast right? > > Sincere regards > Mr. K. G. Kataria > > On 03-Aug-2018, at 05:13, Ten Below wrote: > > Alex, > > Wow. Your insight and pearls of wisdom could not have come at a better > time. Thank you! > > Sincerely, > Richard > > On Thu, Aug 2, 2018 at 3:04 PM, Alex Hillman > wrote: > >> Hey Heather, >> >> Let's start by putting my bias out front: I'll do almost anything to >> avoid having an "investor" involved, because I place a very high value on >> control. And not because I'm a control freak...but because I've learned the >> value/importance of being able to make long term decisions in this >> business. Investors are essentially business partners that don't work on >> the business every day. >> >> With that in mind, I also view business partnerships like marriages - in >> fact, they're often *more* difficult to undo than a marriage. Bringing >> on an investor is like marrying for money. It happens, but it *usually* >> doesn't end well. >> >> I've been where you are, though. Nearly no cash. Banks didn't want to >> talk to me. Here's what we have done, and had a lot of success with: >> >> *1 - Membership drives. *Turn "early signups" into an event. Get your >> on-board members in the same room as your prospective members and make THAT >> the day that people sign up. Taking checks in person helps you avoid >> payment fees (which add up!) but also the collective energy of people >> signing up can be contagious. Make it a celebration. >> >> *2 - "IRL" crowdfunding. *The biggest mistake I see people make with >> crowdfunding is getting caught up in the "crowd" and forgetting what each >> individual is actually contributing towards, and why. >> >> Stuff like Indiegogo and such makes it easier for a wider audience to >> discover a project but coworking spaces are generally hyperlocal efforts, >> so the amount of work that goes into a typical crowdfund campaign (which is >> a LOT) spreads that effort thin. One of the most important lessons I've >> learned from all of the funding work I've done is that the more specific of >> a "thing" you can offer people to contribute towards helping, the better. >> >> For examplebreak that $50k into its component parts. *"We need $5k >> for chairs" *can turn into
Re: [Coworking] Coworking Investors?
Hey Alex, Hello from India. I have been doing the exact same thing and it really helps. But I have no experience with investors, at the end of the day the business can be scaled by an Investors money if you need to multiply fast right? Sincere regards Mr. K. G. Kataria > On 03-Aug-2018, at 05:13, Ten Below wrote: > > Alex, > > Wow. Your insight and pearls of wisdom could not have come at a better time. > Thank you! > > Sincerely, > Richard > >> On Thu, Aug 2, 2018 at 3:04 PM, Alex Hillman >> wrote: >> Hey Heather, >> >> Let's start by putting my bias out front: I'll do almost anything to avoid >> having an "investor" involved, because I place a very high value on control. >> And not because I'm a control freak...but because I've learned the >> value/importance of being able to make long term decisions in this business. >> Investors are essentially business partners that don't work on the business >> every day. >> >> With that in mind, I also view business partnerships like marriages - in >> fact, they're often more difficult to undo than a marriage. Bringing on an >> investor is like marrying for money. It happens, but it usually doesn't end >> well. >> >> I've been where you are, though. Nearly no cash. Banks didn't want to talk >> to me. Here's what we have done, and had a lot of success with: >> >> 1 - Membership drives. Turn "early signups" into an event. Get your on-board >> members in the same room as your prospective members and make THAT the day >> that people sign up. Taking checks in person helps you avoid payment fees >> (which add up!) but also the collective energy of people signing up can be >> contagious. Make it a celebration. >> >> 2 - "IRL" crowdfunding. The biggest mistake I see people make with >> crowdfunding is getting caught up in the "crowd" and forgetting what each >> individual is actually contributing towards, and why. >> >> Stuff like Indiegogo and such makes it easier for a wider audience to >> discover a project but coworking spaces are generally hyperlocal efforts, so >> the amount of work that goes into a typical crowdfund campaign (which is a >> LOT) spreads that effort thin. One of the most important lessons I've >> learned from all of the funding work I've done is that the more specific of >> a "thing" you can offer people to contribute towards helping, the better. >> >> For examplebreak that $50k into its component parts. "We need $5k for >> chairs" can turn into "become our official chair sponsor" for a local >> business who wants to contribute or, even better, "buy one chair and we'll >> dedicate it to you" and offer it to members, supporters, and other local >> businesses. >> >> 3 - Member loans. The first time we expanded we needed a similar ~$50,000. >> We shared exactly what we needed it for, and our current potential options >> for closing that shortfall. After the meeting, a member approached helping >> us - their business had been doing very well (largely in part because of our >> community) and they saw this as a way to give back. In fact, they really >> wanted to buy in as an investor. >> >> But again, even though I had a good relationship with this person, I had to >> ask myself if I wanted them to be my PARTNER if the money wasn't involved, >> and it wasn't a hell yes. >> >> So I said "what about a loan?" and he said yes. We put together terms where >> we had 12 months before we had to start paying back the loan. He gave me a >> rate that was better than I could get with a bank, and I had the flexibility >> down the road if needed. The only challenge we ran into with this deal was a >> sense of entitlement that came with one person loaning us such a large >> amount of money, he tried to occasionally hold it over our heads. It took a >> lot to keep that from affecting my decisions (and imagine if he was an >> actual PARTNER). >> >> The next time we needed an influx of cash, we went back to the community and >> said "before we go to other sources we're wondering if anybody would be >> willing/able to offer us a small loan? We're looking for a few people who >> can loan us $5k-10k each." This approach meant that no single person could >> hold the loan over our heads, and in a worst case scenario we could >> accelerate paying that person back if they did (so they had nothing left to >> hold over us). >> >> The best part about these smaller loans was that we were able to turn these >> into zero interest loans. They had the same "1 year before payback begins" >> term, but we also talked with each member about the actual interest they >> were going to earn at market rate on such a relatively small loan. We said >> "here's the dollar amount - but maybe there is something else that's >> similarly or more valuable to you than the interest?" and in every instance >> we were able to offer something with nearly no cost (membership credits, >> consulting/support, public gratitude,
Re: [Coworking] Coworking Investors?
Alex, Wow. Your insight and pearls of wisdom could not have come at a better time. Thank you! Sincerely, Richard On Thu, Aug 2, 2018 at 3:04 PM, Alex Hillman wrote: > Hey Heather, > > Let's start by putting my bias out front: I'll do almost anything to avoid > having an "investor" involved, because I place a very high value on > control. And not because I'm a control freak...but because I've learned the > value/importance of being able to make long term decisions in this > business. Investors are essentially business partners that don't work on > the business every day. > > With that in mind, I also view business partnerships like marriages - in > fact, they're often *more* difficult to undo than a marriage. Bringing on > an investor is like marrying for money. It happens, but it *usually* > doesn't end well. > > I've been where you are, though. Nearly no cash. Banks didn't want to talk > to me. Here's what we have done, and had a lot of success with: > > *1 - Membership drives. *Turn "early signups" into an event. Get your > on-board members in the same room as your prospective members and make THAT > the day that people sign up. Taking checks in person helps you avoid > payment fees (which add up!) but also the collective energy of people > signing up can be contagious. Make it a celebration. > > *2 - "IRL" crowdfunding. *The biggest mistake I see people make with > crowdfunding is getting caught up in the "crowd" and forgetting what each > individual is actually contributing towards, and why. > > Stuff like Indiegogo and such makes it easier for a wider audience to > discover a project but coworking spaces are generally hyperlocal efforts, > so the amount of work that goes into a typical crowdfund campaign (which is > a LOT) spreads that effort thin. One of the most important lessons I've > learned from all of the funding work I've done is that the more specific of > a "thing" you can offer people to contribute towards helping, the better. > > For examplebreak that $50k into its component parts. *"We need $5k > for chairs" *can turn into "become our official chair sponsor" for a > local business who wants to contribute or, even better, *"buy one chair > and we'll dedicate it to you" *and offer it to members, supporters, and > other local businesses. > > *3 - Member loans. *The first time we expanded we needed a similar > ~$50,000. We shared exactly what we needed it for, and our current > potential options for closing that shortfall. After the meeting, a member > approached helping us - their business had been doing very well (largely in > part because of our community) and they saw this as a way to give back. In > fact, they really wanted to buy in as an investor. > > But again, even though I had a good relationship with this person, I had > to ask myself if I wanted them to be my PARTNER if the money wasn't > involved, and it wasn't a hell yes. > > So I said "what about a loan?" and he said yes. We put together terms > where we had 12 months before we had to start paying back the loan. He gave > me a rate that was better than I could get with a bank, and I had the > flexibility down the road if needed. The only challenge we ran into with > this deal was a sense of entitlement that came with one person loaning us > such a large amount of money, he tried to occasionally hold it over our > heads. It took a lot to keep that from affecting my decisions (and imagine > if he was an actual PARTNER). > > The next time we needed an influx of cash, we went back to the community > and said *"before we go to other sources we're wondering if anybody would > be willing/able to offer us a small loan? We're looking for a few people > who can loan us $5k-10k each."* This approach meant that no single person > could hold the loan over our heads, and in a worst case scenario we could > accelerate paying that person back if they did (so they had nothing left to > hold over us). > > The best part about these smaller loans was that we were able to turn > these into *zero interest *loans. They had the same "1 year before > payback begins" term, but we also talked with each member about the actual > interest they were going to earn at market rate on such a relatively small > loan. We said "here's the dollar amount - but maybe there is something else > that's similarly or more valuable to you than the interest?" and in every > instance we were able to offer something with nearly no cost (membership > credits, consulting/support, public gratitude, etc) instead of paying the > interest. > > *4 - Don't buy everything at once. *This one is the most often > overlooked. > > Your job isn't to fill a space with stuff. It's not even to fill a space > with people. Your job is to bring people together. > > SO YOU DON'T NEED TO BUY EVERYTHING AT ONCE. > > When we opened we didn't have... > > - a coffee machine > - a couch > - whiteboards > - a printer > - a projector and screen > - dishes or mugs > > Since we've never competed
Re: [Coworking] Coworking Investors?
Hey Heather, Let's start by putting my bias out front: I'll do almost anything to avoid having an "investor" involved, because I place a very high value on control. And not because I'm a control freak...but because I've learned the value/importance of being able to make long term decisions in this business. Investors are essentially business partners that don't work on the business every day. With that in mind, I also view business partnerships like marriages - in fact, they're often *more* difficult to undo than a marriage. Bringing on an investor is like marrying for money. It happens, but it *usually* doesn't end well. I've been where you are, though. Nearly no cash. Banks didn't want to talk to me. Here's what we have done, and had a lot of success with: *1 - Membership drives. *Turn "early signups" into an event. Get your on-board members in the same room as your prospective members and make THAT the day that people sign up. Taking checks in person helps you avoid payment fees (which add up!) but also the collective energy of people signing up can be contagious. Make it a celebration. *2 - "IRL" crowdfunding. *The biggest mistake I see people make with crowdfunding is getting caught up in the "crowd" and forgetting what each individual is actually contributing towards, and why. Stuff like Indiegogo and such makes it easier for a wider audience to discover a project but coworking spaces are generally hyperlocal efforts, so the amount of work that goes into a typical crowdfund campaign (which is a LOT) spreads that effort thin. One of the most important lessons I've learned from all of the funding work I've done is that the more specific of a "thing" you can offer people to contribute towards helping, the better. For examplebreak that $50k into its component parts. *"We need $5k for chairs" *can turn into "become our official chair sponsor" for a local business who wants to contribute or, even better, *"buy one chair and we'll dedicate it to you" *and offer it to members, supporters, and other local businesses. *3 - Member loans. *The first time we expanded we needed a similar ~$50,000. We shared exactly what we needed it for, and our current potential options for closing that shortfall. After the meeting, a member approached helping us - their business had been doing very well (largely in part because of our community) and they saw this as a way to give back. In fact, they really wanted to buy in as an investor. But again, even though I had a good relationship with this person, I had to ask myself if I wanted them to be my PARTNER if the money wasn't involved, and it wasn't a hell yes. So I said "what about a loan?" and he said yes. We put together terms where we had 12 months before we had to start paying back the loan. He gave me a rate that was better than I could get with a bank, and I had the flexibility down the road if needed. The only challenge we ran into with this deal was a sense of entitlement that came with one person loaning us such a large amount of money, he tried to occasionally hold it over our heads. It took a lot to keep that from affecting my decisions (and imagine if he was an actual PARTNER). The next time we needed an influx of cash, we went back to the community and said *"before we go to other sources we're wondering if anybody would be willing/able to offer us a small loan? We're looking for a few people who can loan us $5k-10k each."* This approach meant that no single person could hold the loan over our heads, and in a worst case scenario we could accelerate paying that person back if they did (so they had nothing left to hold over us). The best part about these smaller loans was that we were able to turn these into *zero interest *loans. They had the same "1 year before payback begins" term, but we also talked with each member about the actual interest they were going to earn at market rate on such a relatively small loan. We said "here's the dollar amount - but maybe there is something else that's similarly or more valuable to you than the interest?" and in every instance we were able to offer something with nearly no cost (membership credits, consulting/support, public gratitude, etc) instead of paying the interest. *4 - Don't buy everything at once. *This one is the most often overlooked. Your job isn't to fill a space with stuff. It's not even to fill a space with people. Your job is to bring people together. SO YOU DON'T NEED TO BUY EVERYTHING AT ONCE. When we opened we didn't have... - a coffee machine - a couch - whiteboards - a printer - a projector and screen - dishes or mugs Since we've never competed on "having stuff" we made it clear that we'd buy stuff that was a) most important, b) as soon as we could afford it. Want Indy Hall to have something faster? Help us recruit more members! Help us find or negotiate a deal! we didn't have chairs for every desk. we didn't even have the number of desks that our space could holdwe just had
[Coworking] Coworking Investors?
Hey all! I am in the process of opening a coworking space specifically designed for uplifting and sustaining creative professionals' careers. I'm so glad I found this channel, as it's a great sounding board for some consistent questions I've been having. Plus, I can see that a lot of our ideas have already been replicated elsewhere, so I'm excited to learn how others have done it before us! We have a fantastic space ready to go, and everyone is on board with it, however we are going to need some starting capital to finish up some of the construction. Our landlord (the building owner) has already worked out a deal with us to finish 1/3 of 5000sq ft space, with the last 1/3 being our responsibility. We are estimating the construction costs to be around $15k-$20k, and then we'll have to pay for the furnishing after that as well. Overall, we're looking at needing probably $50,000 or more to furnish all of that area... We're planning on doing a crowdfund, but are still expecting to be short. :( Does anyone have any experience in asking investors or companies for sponsorships of any kind? I have no idea where to start, what to ask, or where to find people that would be interested in investing money of that kind. Any good resources or advice? Much appreciated! -- 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 coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[Coworking] Investors - where did you find yours?
Hi all! I'm hard at work trying to find investors to make our NYC upper west side coworking space a reality. I'm wondering what the trend has been regarding fundraising and where I should focus my substantial but still limited energy. So far seem I've found people who are really interested but have no real money or people potentially interest and have money but so far haven't drunk the coworking coolaid. There seems to be quite a few routes to take: 1) Self-funding 2) Angels 3) Real estate investors 4) General/tech investors 5) Crowdfunding 6) Friends and family 7) Partnership with existing coworking owners 8) Others? What has been most successful for you and what hasn't been? Thanks in advance! THANKS! Sharon *Sharon Schanzer Founder Creative Director : RLDGROUP : where technology, creativity strategy meet Founder : Helix : Coworking and connecting on the Upper West Side* @helixnyc @nycsfmaven www.rldgroup.com www.helixnyc.com http://www.linkedin.com/in/sharonschanzer sha...@rldgroup.com 646.595.0033 office 917.677.5827 mobile/sms -- 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 coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
Re: [Coworking] Investors - where did you find yours?
Right on, Sharon! You're going to find that many investors aren't going to understand this model. If they're real estate investors, they will muddy your business model. If they're startup investors, they'll be looking for significant returns. At this point, you have two groups of people to convince: members and investors. That's 2x the work...which is a big part of why I advocate for a different approach: http://dangerouslyawesome.com/2011/09/how-to-fund-your-coworking-space/ Good luck! -Alex -- /ah indyhall.org coworking in philadelphia On Tue, Oct 1, 2013 at 2:46 PM, Sharon Schanzer sha...@rldgroup.com wrote: Hi all! I'm hard at work trying to find investors to make our NYC upper west side coworking space a reality. I'm wondering what the trend has been regarding fundraising and where I should focus my substantial but still limited energy. So far seem I've found people who are really interested but have no real money or people potentially interest and have money but so far haven't drunk the coworking coolaid. There seems to be quite a few routes to take: 1) Self-funding 2) Angels 3) Real estate investors 4) General/tech investors 5) Crowdfunding 6) Friends and family 7) Partnership with existing coworking owners 8) Others? What has been most successful for you and what hasn't been? Thanks in advance! THANKS! Sharon *Sharon Schanzer Founder Creative Director : RLDGROUP : where technology, creativity strategy meet Founder : Helix : Coworking and connecting on the Upper West Side* @helixnyc @nycsfmaven www.rldgroup.com www.helixnyc.com http://www.linkedin.com/in/sharonschanzer sha...@rldgroup.com 646.595.0033 office 917.677.5827 mobile/sms -- 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 coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. 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 coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
[Coworking] Investors
Hey team, I have been approached by three different investors in the last few weeks for new locations. Creative Density is looking at a second location and building up the new community for it in a simlar way to how we did it two years ago. It's very grass roots and will only happen if the community can be formed before the space opens. Once this process started to happen that's when investors started to show up. I know several others have had similar experience so I am hoping I can have guidance about important questions to ask and possible structures. What I'm thinking: Business structure: Creative Density's current location remains my own domain. They don't get a chunk of that but they are investing in future locations with the new location being a new business entity. We will share access to my intellectual property but in case of a split I will retain control in a reasonable time frame of transition. How much money: They are looking to purchase the building and renovating it. I'm working on how much money they need to put in beyound that and how to split revenue and profits. Do they have a good personality match and complimentary skill set? I'm laying out my principals of what I want coworking to be and that profit is not the sole driving force. Yes, we want to make money but we also want this a platform and community that supports freelancers and remote workers as well as small teams. Private offices sell fast but they can not dominate the space and must be around only a third of the space. They do have a good skill set that compliments my own as an experience coworking space owner. Any advice would helpful. Craig -- 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 coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
Re: [Coworking] Investors
Craig, This is a very interesting topic and I was thinking about introducing a similar question to the group. I was recently talking with someone involved with coliving down in SF and thoughts about real-estate came up again. I'd love to buy the building we are in but the hard assets Office Nomads has is mostly a bunch of Ikea desks and that's not exactly good collateral for a loan that size. Navigating the relationship with investors is tricky as you are highlighting. I don't know how to make someone millions, but I do know how to make a profitable business and a strong community of loyal members. Seems like a lot to work with if the right investors came along. Jacob --- Office Nomads - Individuality without Isolation http://www.officenomads.com - (206) 323-6500 On Tue, Aug 20, 2013 at 9:22 AM, Craig Baute - Creative Density Coworking baut...@gmail.com wrote: Hey team, I have been approached by three different investors in the last few weeks for new locations. Creative Density is looking at a second location and building up the new community for it in a simlar way to how we did it two years ago. It's very grass roots and will only happen if the community can be formed before the space opens. Once this process started to happen that's when investors started to show up. I know several others have had similar experience so I am hoping I can have guidance about important questions to ask and possible structures. What I'm thinking: Business structure: Creative Density's current location remains my own domain. They don't get a chunk of that but they are investing in future locations with the new location being a new business entity. We will share access to my intellectual property but in case of a split I will retain control in a reasonable time frame of transition. How much money: They are looking to purchase the building and renovating it. I'm working on how much money they need to put in beyound that and how to split revenue and profits. Do they have a good personality match and complimentary skill set? I'm laying out my principals of what I want coworking to be and that profit is not the sole driving force. Yes, we want to make money but we also want this a platform and community that supports freelancers and remote workers as well as small teams. Private offices sell fast but they can not dominate the space and must be around only a third of the space. They do have a good skill set that compliments my own as an experience coworking space owner. Any advice would helpful. Craig -- 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 coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. 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 coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
Re: [Coworking] Investors
In addition to how we've handled fundraising for Indy Hall (in which we haven't taken investment), I've raised a non-trivial amount of capital for our first steps towards a residential spin on Indy Hall. Both have taught me quite a few things. 1) We created an LP(limited partnership) to own/manage the equity generated by the new project. The LP is maintained by myself and our real estate development partners, and is structured similarly to a standard business partnership. The roles and responsibilities of our partners are clearly defined, and ours are as well. Our investors are non-controlling investors, trusting us based on our demonstration of traction and past history of success. That LP is also TOTALLY separate from Indy Hall's and our partners' LLC. This keeps Indy Hall's existing assets safe should something go haywire with the deal. 2) Be your own first investor. Since investors are essentially buying a piece of your traction, but there's no better way to keep your foothold than to invest yourself. In addition to the fact that I was a controlling partner of the LP, I contributed ~16% of the total capital raising goal. I would try to find a way to bring some % to the table yourself (friends and family). I had a personal goal of at least 10%, and thankfully was able to do that from savings. 3) Regardless of legal control, put yourself in a mindset where every investor becomes your business partner. This can be an advantage, especially when investors have more skin in the game than simply a financial investment, but it can also be a disadvantage. Money is a BAD reason to bring someone on as a business partner, even if you like everything else about them. Quick story: in Indy Hall's first growth/expansion, we had a member approach us about the finances. He was a great member, and believed in Indy Hall's future. He offered investment because he saw the opportunity, but we decided to take on the money as debt instead because money wasn't the right reason to bring on a new business partner. 4) Decide your terms ahead of time, and hold your ground. We had investors who we *really* thought was a good fit for the project, but he wanted all kinds of modifications to our terms. It ended up being a big waste of time and legal fees, and we ended up turning him away from the project. 5) Back to the first point about the LP, buying/building property is a completely different business than running a coworking space. We have an offer on the table from our landlord to buy the building we currently occupy in the next 2 years, which could be both lucrative and meaningful for our community, but I'm not in the business of being a building manager nor do I want to be. That's my choice - yours may be different. But in our case, among the MANY considerations is finding a partner who DOES want to be that building manager. 6) In this still-very-conceptual model for buying our current building, my goal would be to seed the investment pool (if not completely close it, though that may be too far of a reach) with funds from Indy Hall members and their connections. Basically, if we're going to take investment, my top priority is for it to be from people who already intimately understand the value we're creating and who want to help us share that value with others. In a far less conceptual reality of now, every penny we've ever BORROWED (and a significant portion of the money we've raised from investors) came from people who've already been impacted by Indy Hall - in most cases, in a financially positive way - and are looking to reinvest that in a way that will benefit themselves and others. Actual conversation I've had: being a member of Indy Hall helped me make $XX since joining. I want to put that towards the future of the thing that helped me get here, so that it can keep helping me advance. -Alex -Alex -- /ah indyhall.org coworking in philadelphia On Tue, Aug 20, 2013 at 12:22 PM, Craig Baute - Creative Density Coworking baut...@gmail.com wrote: Hey team, I have been approached by three different investors in the last few weeks for new locations. Creative Density is looking at a second location and building up the new community for it in a simlar way to how we did it two years ago. It's very grass roots and will only happen if the community can be formed before the space opens. Once this process started to happen that's when investors started to show up. I know several others have had similar experience so I am hoping I can have guidance about important questions to ask and possible structures. What I'm thinking: Business structure: Creative Density's current location remains my own domain. They don't get a chunk of that but they are investing in future locations with the new location being a new business entity. We will share access to my intellectual property but in case of a split I will retain control in a reasonable time frame of transition. How much money: They are looking
Re: [Coworking] Investors
Thanks Alex and Danilio. The model that was described by Alex basically outlined my thought process. The leading investor right now is already in the space and has been following the coworking movement for a while and been a friend for over a year. I believe he has a valuable skill set but I would just need to clearly lay out my goals because we might differ a bit. I don't want to be an office manager but create a work clubhouse that is a platform for mobile workers and freelancers. I would have the hands on role and marketing message so I would continue to guide the culture and create a message that continues to attract smart and friendly members. I'll continue to follow through with more questions as I go through this process. Craig -- 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 coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
Re: [Coworking] Investors Business Daily!
CADU good morning! Tks to your invite. I will try to visit you Asap. Best regrds. Jorge 21 7638-2459 22 8129-1955 2010/12/1 Cadu de Castro Alves cadudecastroal...@gmail.com Hi, Jorge. I'm Cadu and I work at BeesOffice, a Coworking space here in Rio de Janeiro. Would you mind visit us to know our space? Feel free to come here and drink some cappuccino with us. ;) Abs, Cadu de Castro Alves BeesOffice Espaço de Coworking - Unidade Centro Rua Teófilo Otoni, 52/1203 - Centro - Rio de Janeiro - RJ CEP: 20090-070 Tel/Fax: + 55 21 2233-5126 www.beesoffice.com On 30/11/2010, at 11:14, Jorge Arthur jabg2...@gmail.com wrote: Hi Jerome ! g-morning! I am a networker available to work via the Internet. Pls feel free to contact me. Best regards. Jorge Guimaraes jabg2...@gmail.comjabg2...@gmail.com \ jabg2...@ymail.com jabg2...@ymail.com +552176382459 \ +552281291955 Rio de Janeiro city, Brazil == 2010/11/30 Jerome Chang jer...@blankspaces.comjer...@blankspaces.com Hi all. I just wanted to let you know that coworking has made it into the national periodical, Investors Business Daily! They interviewed me a couple of weeks ago and posted this article on their site on Friday. Basically, they wanted to show how landlords have become quite creative and unorthodox in selecting tenants to fill their often, vacant spaces. Those of you who are trying to convince landlords to give your concept a try, show them this article: http://www.blankspaces.com/press/news.php http://www.blankspaces.com/press/news.php Jerome Chang __ BLANKSPACES work FOR yourself, not BY yourself http://www.blankspaces.com/www.blankspaces.com 5405 Wilshire Blvd (2 blocks west of La Brea) Los Angeles, CA 90036 323.330.9505 (office) -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking%2bunsubscr...@googlegroups.com coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en. -- Att JORGE ARTHUR B. GUIMARÃES http://www.linkedin.com/in/jorgearthur2009 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.comcoworking%2bunsubscr...@googlegroups.com . For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en. -- Att JORGE ARTHUR B. GUIMARÃES http://www.linkedin.com/in/jorgearthur2009 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
Re: [Coworking] Investors Business Daily!
Hi, Jorge. I'm Cadu and I work at BeesOffice, a Coworking space here in Rio de Janeiro. Would you mind visit us to know our space? Feel free to come here and drink some cappuccino with us. ;) Abs, Cadu de Castro Alves BeesOffice Espaço de Coworking - Unidade Centro Rua Teófilo Otoni, 52/1203 - Centro - Rio de Janeiro - RJ CEP: 20090-070 Tel/Fax: + 55 21 2233-5126 www.beesoffice.com On 30/11/2010, at 11:14, Jorge Arthur jabg2...@gmail.com wrote: Hi Jerome ! g-morning! I am a networker available to work via the Internet. Pls feel free to contact me. Best regards. Jorge Guimaraes jabg2...@gmail.com \ jabg2...@ymail.com +552176382459 \ +552281291955 Rio de Janeiro city, Brazil == 2010/11/30 Jerome Chang jer...@blankspaces.com Hi all. I just wanted to let you know that coworking has made it into the national periodical, Investors Business Daily! They interviewed me a couple of weeks ago and posted this article on their site on Friday. Basically, they wanted to show how landlords have become quite creative and unorthodox in selecting tenants to fill their often, vacant spaces. Those of you who are trying to convince landlords to give your concept a try, show them this article: http://www.blankspaces.com/press/news.php Jerome Chang __ BLANKSPACES work FOR yourself, not BY yourself www.blankspaces.com 5405 Wilshire Blvd (2 blocks west of La Brea) Los Angeles, CA 90036 323.330.9505 (office) -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en. -- Att JORGE ARTHUR B. GUIMARÃES -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
[Coworking] Investors Business Daily!
Hi all. I just wanted to let you know that coworking has made it into the national periodical, Investors Business Daily! They interviewed me a couple of weeks ago and posted this article on their site on Friday. Basically, they wanted to show how landlords have become quite creative and unorthodox in selecting tenants to fill their often, vacant spaces. Those of you who are trying to convince landlords to give your concept a try, show them this article: http://www.blankspaces.com/press/news.php Jerome Chang __ BLANKSPACES work FOR yourself, not BY yourself www.blankspaces.com 5405 Wilshire Blvd (2 blocks west of La Brea) Los Angeles, CA 90036 323.330.9505 (office) -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To post to this group, send email to cowork...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
