Poetry workshop led by Franny Choi at Room Project. Photo courtesy of Room Project.
Over the course of the last five to ten years, many companies have started to adopt policies for employees that wish to work remotely. Couple this with freelance workers in need of a space to get their own work done, free from the distractions of home, and you have a surge in the popularity of co-working spaces.
Co-working spaces are plentiful in Metro Detroit and through a variety of location and pricing options, professionals in the area are able to find a convenient space that will allow them to continue growing their professional careers.
Member dinner at Room Project. Photo courtesy of Room Project.
Room Project
Room Project founder Christin Lee says Room Project isn’t what you’d typically think of as a co-working space — “we don’t have a place to take phone calls or meetings…” Instead, Lee built Room Project as a place for women and non-binary writers to come together for readings, workshops, performances, skill-sharing, book clubs and art crticism. Room Project is also open 24 hours a day for writers to come and work at any time.
Something that makes Room Project stand out is that fees for its “community membership” level can be offset by volunteering and helping others further their work. A “desk membership” is also available for those that want a reserved space of their own.
Ponyride
Focused on helping budding artists, entrepreneurs and non-profit organizations thrive, Ponyride is a space where professionals of all disciplines can come together and create. Originally located at Vermont St., Ponyride moved to Loraine St. in 2019. Whether you just need a place with high-speed internet access for you to do work on a laptop or you’re looking to create your next masterpiece, Ponyride has a wide variety of spaces from metalwork shops to dance studios.
Spacelab Detroit
Aimed at professionals in the architecture and building-related industries, Spacelab Detroit has two locations in Detroit. One is located on Shelby St. near TCF Center while the other can be found in northwest Detroit on 7 Mile Rd. within Detroit Cabinet Manufacturing’s showroom. Both locations offer different pricing/space options from a “flex space” that is shared with other members to a private office that can accommodate up to eight people.
Two people working at Bamboo Detroit. Photo credit: Leydya Yatooma.
Bamboo Detroit
One of the longest-standing co-working spaces in Detroit, Bamboo has been around since 2013, providing desks, common areas, offices and more to Metro Detroiters growing their careers. Uniquely, they also provide a “virtual office membership” that grants a downtown Detroit mailing address and package services, one free day pass to the co-working space per month, two hours of conference room use, access to events and classes, one-on-one professional coaching and more. Recently, Bamboo also opened up the top floor of their building for even more co-working space.
Femology
Looking to provide a space for women to work and network together, Meagan Ward founded Femology in 2017. Ward saw that women didn’t have a space where they could freely excel in their professional endeavors and wanted to fill that need. Members of varying levels can take advantage of unlimited access to Femology’s co-working space, amenities, high-speed Wi-Fi and last year, Femology expanded to include a podcast studio and yoga room.
TechTown
In addition to providing co-working and meeting spaces for entrepreneurs in Metro Detroit, TechTown also offers programs for technology and small business startups. From bootcamps to one-on-one assistance to help people get their new business ideas off the ground, TechTown has impacted the economic development of thousands of Detroit businesses.