ARK coworking
ARK is a genuinely affordable coworking space for creatives, freelancers and start ups, which impacts our local communities for good
Initial inspiration
The inspiration for ARK coworking originates from TENT - a free to join coworking space in London run by a local church & charity KXC, who had been given meanwhile use of an empty building and formed a community of like minded coworkers. When the meanwhile use of the space expired and TENT was was forced to close, there was desire to continue the coworking community and establish a more permanent set up.
How it all started
A group of freelancers from KXC who were a part of TENT explored the idea of a new affordable coworking community in a commercial building taken on by the church. KXC were central for transforming ideas from a rough business plan into reality, with hubs involved paining & refurbishing the building, interior designers creating bold designs for the space, graphic designers creating our brand, donations of furniture & help with funding. 3 months in our first members joined & suddenly what was recently an idea became a physical reality.
Memorable highs along the journey
There are so many moments that spark joy along the journey, including -
We hosted the Beano in one of our meeting rooms - as simple as this seems, it felt like a childhood dream meeting these guys!
In Dec 18 we gave away our first ARK for Good donation to charities in KX - such a privilege to see the community come together to give back to our local area.
Our first Christmas lunch, seeing a community form from nothing just a few months before.
Formational lows
The first 6 months were very tough, lots of long days, transferring out of stable jobs, managing cash flow on a shoe string, failing to see members joining & having to pivot our approach a number of times. We had to make tough decisions early on that we didn’t think we’d have to make until much later, two in particular -
We gave away a floor of the space to a social enterprise for the first 3 months - with a bit of a misunderstanding on finances, what we thought we were getting each month turned out to be what they thought was the total figure. Not wanting to start our journey in a bitter way, we chose to express our value of generosity, wanting to bless them even with the little we had. We learned that if you don’t express generosity when you have just a little, you won’t do it when you have a lot - formational in our ARK for Good giving we now do.
New members applied in the Gambling industry - their membership would have sustained us for months early on. But we felt this wasn’t in keeping with the people we wanted to be helping, instead it felt like it would be the opposite. We chose to say No, and had to hustle in other ways to keep ourselves funded. We learned early on that knowing our “No” is so fundamental in knowing our “Yes”, giving us focus to serve the people we really wanted to help through ARK. It also taught us to trust in God for His provision.
Foundation verses that have inspired along the way
Exodus 36:1-7, the story of the building of the ARK and the role of the leaders to curate the values of the community.
Exodus 33:15, Moses saying, “If you don’t personally go with us, don’t make us leave this place”, teaching us to desire & seek Gods presence in all that we did.
Key advice to other pioneers
Live out the values you want to see manifested in your venture. Basically, practice what you preach.
Our why
Rising costs in our towns & cities has meant that many freelancers, social enterprises and young startups struggle to find a home, meaning that individuals increasingly opt to work alone from home or in impersonal spaces such as coffee shops. Working alone has a detrimental impact on an individuals mental health and emotional well being, and a lack of community inhibits innovation.
Business model
We charge membership fees, we operate as a not-for-profit, held accountable by a parent charity (e.g. the local church)
Team
Nick Johnson, Gavin Turnbull, hosted by Kings Cross Church
Timing
ARK coworking was set-up in Kings Cross in January 2016.
After 12 months ARK was profitable.
Funding
ARK coworking requires approximately £50k-£75k to set-up, depending on location & size of space
Structure
ARK communities are a 100% trading subsidiary of the local church, held accountable through a collaboration agreement with a Community Interest Company, ARK base.
