Meetings changed forever during Covid. At our workhubs we had lovely boardroom type meeting rooms that members used or outsiders booked, bringing us extra income, perhaps £150 plus a day.
But then everyone, by necessity, had to meet online. What had once been a little used app called Skype became Teams and Zoom. People who had virtually never used these tools (or even heard of them) rapidly got used to them. When the lockdowns ended and the vaccinations did their thing, returning workhub members and new customers were completely used to meetings (particularly with larger groups) online not in our meeting rooms.
We do not think that a meeting room, in the post Covid world of online meetings, will be necessary or sufficiently in demand/profitable to justify in a workhub. However, it should be assumed that if one or more of your offices is vacant at any time, it can be used by members for meetings. If there is no meeting room, we suggest you do a deal with another space nearby.
Nothing is wrong with face to face. Indeed many small meetings in spaces like ours take place on comfy chairs and sofas. A real bookable meeting room is a nice option if you can afford the space. But in our case, we let our boardroom as an office and we only occasionally have requests for its use which we regretfully decline.
One factor to consider is the amount of staff time organising the meetings rooms. Not just the bookings but the setting up, AV potentially, the coffee making, the noise for members nearby and the clearing up. In comparison with getting someone a day pass, the meeting room work can be frankly, more trouble than it’s worth in a smaller, market town or city village coworking space. If you can have one though, do it. Just don’t think it’s essential or a big money spinner any more. Here’s what our Truro room looked like before and after Covid…
Before
After
