Creative Coworking 🌴 Los Angeles
WHAT IS COWORKING ?
Coworking looks and feels like a social gathering of people working independently, either for a company or for their own business. It's definitely a community inspired workspace with the main ingredient being synergy and sharing like minded values on the freedom to work when, where and how. The traditional 9-to-5 (our parent's work groove) no longer exists. We can work steadily from an iPad, a Smartphone and anywhere that serves coffee with an outlet. There are studies about the growing rate of freelancers, independent contractors, and consultants will nearly triple within a few years. Something like that makes me feel hopeful, because it just proves that people are going for it. The now or never effect began awhile ago and it's only going to increase in productivity, which will then create more jobs.
We've been around a few coworking spots and believe me, sometimes it really is all about the coffee. It's gotta be free, craft and readily available. And wifi, the faster, the better our workday. (Not gonna lie, we love free snacks) So, we carefully scoured for our best L.A. recommendations should you be a freelancer/contractor/consultant/entreprenuer.
AND YOU ARE CREATIVE.
ACCORDING TO HUFFINGTON POST:
91% of people have better interactions with others after coworking. ☕️
CTRL DTLA / DTLA / @ctrlcollective
Nestled in the downtown fashion district. They don’t want to be called a “coworking” space, but a “supercollider for brilliance”. Up to 6 levels of memberships, one that’s even suited for the “food server slash designer” with a Nights & Weekends membership at $79/mo.
🐶 Amenities
coffee bar/snacks
free printing
dog friendly
in-house VC’s (that’s definitely worth looking into) along w/mentors & consultants in a variety of fields
wifi obviously
media lab
maker space
workshops/classes
The Hatchery Press / LARCHMONT / @thehatcherypress
This is a shared space for writers. In L.A. that could mean writing the next great novel or becoming the next Ben and Matt at the Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay. It’s fairly common knowledge that like most creative artists, writers don’t make a large income at the start of their careers. So what’s good about THP is that they price membership as affordable as possible while still nurturing up-and-coming writers.
💻 Amenities:
wifi obviously
printing/copy/fax
free tea/coffee
discounts at local restaurants (Hi Cafe Gratitude ), writing softwares, workshops and Waffle Wednesdays (possibly the best cure for a humpday)
Camp @ The Ranch / Venice (Mar Vista) / @camp_mar_vista
First off if you go on to their Instagram, you'll notice that they are crazy about good vinyls. This coworking group prides themselves in being cozy, creative and collaborative. Intimate 800 sq feet space on Venice Blvd. I guess you can say it’s a coffee shop atmosphere for creative types.
🎹 Amenities:
high-speed TWC business class wifi
complimentary filtered water and soft drinks
printer/scanner/copier use
a small conference room soon to be fully-equipped for Google Hangouts
mail/ package handling for monthly pass holders
small storage space for monthly pass holders
NEUEHOUSE / HOLLYWOOD / @neuehouse
Imported from New York City, Neuehouse is a private coworking club for the entreprenuers and creative leaders. Think Soho House for coworking. The NYC franchise is quite "innovator elite", in the sense that succeeding with your goals is #1 priority. You're there to work, socialize, make contacts, and possibly sign contracts.
🏆 Amenities:
4 types of membership plans starting at $150 "communal" (basically a hot desk) to $3,500 for your own private studio
They don't list a full compilation of offerings, probably because they are that luxe. A place like this I would assume provides complimentary gourmet coffee to go with its Architectural Digest decor. And let's just assume they offer a lot more than that.
OPODZ / Little Tokyo: in the Arts District of DTLA / @opodz
A block away from the Metro Gold Line @ The Little Tokyo Station, you know for LA. people who don't drive. This is for the artist at heart, because they have open calls for gallery shows as well as feature local artists within the work space. Day rates start at $20 to a dedicated desk for $375/month.
🍱 Amenities:
wifi obviously
free coffee/tea
parking on site
sponsored events
conference room
print/scan/fax
showers / bike room
exclusive discounts at local vendors
Kathy from Opodz took a few minutes to talk about what's really cool and wonderful about their coworking space.
First tell us about your neighborhood Little Tokyo. If you had to describe it to someone who has never been to L.A. or is considering a new work area. How is Little Tokyo different than other parts of LA?
Little Tokyo is a vibrant, eccentric neighborhood, located in Downtown LA, next to the Arts District. It's a place to grab ramen for lunch, take an afternoon tea break and get work done.
Here you'll find good eats, cute clothing boutiques, and museums including the Japanese American National History Museum and the Geffen Contemporary. Compared to other parts of LA, it's pretty walkable and friendly. On weekdays, you'll see folks gathering for Happy Hour at local bars. On weekends, you'll see the cosplayers gathered around Weller Court and the businesses catering anime otakus.
Opodz does a lot to support local artists. What was one event in particular that you felt brought the essence of what your co-working community is all about?
It's hard to pin point just one, but I think one of our highlights was the Francisco Palomares public art show. One of our members Danny really spearheaded this. He hit up his friends, and brought over some vegan friendly carnitas and food from Boyle Height restaurants. Two local artists played some sick acoustics setting the mood for the night. While LoCo CoCo (the clown), face-painted and handed balloon figures for guests. We were all happy to bring all our skills together and make the night happen!
What are the advantages of working in an open space?
An open space means the freedom to work without feeling physically limited to a spot. You're able to move around from a counter to the couch over to any desk you feel more productive. You'll also be able to get your private time when work needs to be done, but come lunch time -- there's a great chance to share snacks and drinks in the kitchen area with coworkers and new friends. Without the cubicle walls, this environment means you're free to meet people from programmers, nonprofit members, journalists to lawyers who you could brainstorm new ideas with, or potentially collaborate with.
Your $20 day passes are really affordable in comparison to other co-work spots (in LA and other cities). On the site it's described for the "casual coworking person". For someone who's never co-worked before, define what is casual coworking.
Day passes are perfect for the casual co-working person. This would be a person who's looking for to meet other professionals, or another place to work out of --- but not necessarily the commitment of sticking to one place.
Best lunch spots in your neighborhood?
Cafe Dulce, Hakata Ramen, Snociety, Subway's, Daikokuya, Monzo...ask anyone and they'd give you a dozen other options too. Little Tokyo is known for its excellent food! For a memorable and very "Little Tokyo" experience, go to Chado Tea Room for lunch and then play the ukelele at U Space.
What was the most recent happy hour like at Opodz?
A couple of us met up for drinks at a casual low-key bar on 8th. We chilled waiting for some friends to join us, and then we headed out to the Downtown Art Walk. It's wonderful that every second Thursday we're able to browse the nearby galleries and see local artists. Then we called it a night at the bar next door - Wolf and Crane. On a less formal level, you can usually spot our members at Wolf -- we do get neighbor's discounts there after all!
What does Opodz offer creative types that can possibly spark inspiration to their work life?
Our famous chalk wall is a great place for doodles and leaving your prized signatures. We have also host arts and crafts events with our members from coaster making, origami to needle-felting. A lot of us, even those who work outside the field of art, have some sort of creative talent to share. On Thursdays, most of the museums downtown have free admissions, so a group of us have made it a tradition to go out and explore.
The Arts District is a minute away from us, so walking down the neighborhood -- we're surrounded by unique sights and see a lot of cool folks in action. In general, we're pretty excited to see creative people and share ideas at Opodz.
Is there a typical day at Opodz?
Hard to describe a typical day, since it all depends on the collective vibe of our members. Some days are social and talkative, other days like quiet days when we're all concentrating on our projects. But it's safe to say around noon time, we're usually inviting each other to lunch or picking up orders for each other.
