Co working spaces have now become the growth hub of the startup ecosystem, but the concept had its humble beginnings, a little over a decade ago. The idea then was simply to utilise basic infrastructure and resources that working from home could not provide.
But as the number of entrepreneurs grew, so did a hunger to collaborate, and to generate and exchange ideas. Soon it became clear that these spaces had tremendous potential to provide a network much needed for the growth of businesses.
Today, most co-working spaces are a cornucopia of services and benefits. Technological support, fundraising and networking opportunities, mentorship, basic amenities such a stocked pantry, cultural and de-stressing activities, a friendly non-competitive atmosphere, and a sense of community, make up some of the common benefits provided by all – this is of course, excluding the wide range of offers on renting desks. All co-working spaces, however, have one common offering – a hassle-free environment for the optimum growth of a business, which makes these spaces a hive for the busy bee entrepreneurs to co-work in.
Here are some notable co-working spaces present across the country with their unique selling points and their contributions to a flourishing startup ecosystem:
Awfis
With 14 operational centres in NCR, Bengaluru, and Mumbai, Awfis houses a diverse community of members ranging from SME’s, large corporates, and solopreneurs across industries. They provide Uber-like real time bookings anywhere between one hour and 11 months prior to requirement, giving their users a flexibility of booking ‘just-in-time’ through their mobile app.
What is Awfis’s USP?
We have tie ups in multiple cities for meeting rooms with hospitality players like Lemon Tree Hotels, Hyatt, Trident, Marine Plaza, Sarovar, Beatles, Red Fox etc. Our pilot project, called ‘Mobile Awfis’, in Gurugram, allows our members to book the van from the app and be productive even while on the road. Our eight-seater mobile van is fully equipped with work desks, meeting table, high speed Wi-Fi, teleconferencing, printing, CCTV, pantry, washroom, appropriate lighting, and ergonomic furniture for a comfortable and productive work environment.
A picture of your startup diversity
Awfis currently has members from sectors like e-commerce, Food tech, digital marketing, healthcare and wellness, Edtech, Fintech, travel, legal, and many more.
Do you have an incubation programme and screening process for the startups?
There are no set membership criteria, but we do focus on diversifying our community to provide more networking and collaboration opportunities to each of our members. We have a great mix of startups, SMEs, corporates, and freelancers from various industries working out of our centres.
Pricing
Daily: Starts at Rs 300/-
Monthly: Starts at Rs 4500/-
(This is an excerpt from the story ‘Will 2017 be the year of co-working space?’ published in Yourstory on January 17, 2017. You can read the full story at https://yourstory.com/2017/01/co-working-spaces/ )