Tell us about Hub Australia.
Hub is Australia’s largest coworking community for growing businesses and after starting out in 2011, we’ve grown to have coworking locations in Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide.
Just recently we reached a significant milestone which saw us open Hub Southern Cross in Melbourne, which is currently Victoria’s largest coworking space.
What sets us apart from other coworking spaces is our focus is on growing businesses and also the diversity of our members. This creates a multitude of unique business opportunities for our members who often develop new business ventures or collaborative opportunities with their fellow Hub members, providing value well beyond office space.
I think this added value supports our B Corp certification which recognises businesses which create value in the community beyond profit. Hub was a founding B Corp member in Australia which is something that makes us extremely proud.
What inspired you to start Hub Australia?
I have a background in small business and while studying my MBA in Madrid in 2009 I discovered coworking. I loved the diversity of the businesses within the space and coming into work each day with different people doing different things. It was a very inspiring environment and gave me an insight into how a small business can thrive when surrounded by other small businesses – it seemed one’s success had a knock on effect to those around it.
Tell us about your career and background.
My family’s background is in hospitality and this had quite an influence on me. It was being involved in my family’s businesses from a young age where I learnt how to create amazing places for people to work. It really sparked my passion for not only making workspaces functional but also places to foster business and personal growth, and most of all somewhere people would love to work.
My background is very much entrepreneurial and some of my past businesses were in industries such as events management and technology. Also, in 2014 I was awarded Australian Small Business Person of the Year by the Council of Small Business Australia which was a definite career highlight.
Describe a typical day for you.
At the moment, my days mostly involve managing various stakeholders so we can continue to create innovative workspaces. Looking at it more broadly I see my role as inspiring people around a vision, setting a strategy and making sure we don’t run out of cash!
What advice do you have for those wanting to start their own business?
Persevere and keep going!
When Hub Australia kicked off in 2011, coworking wasn’t widely known in Australia, and it took a lot to put coworking on the map and on the radar of businesses. We had to continually adapt our business model to find something which would work for both our members and also the Hub business.
What’s next for you, and Hub Australia?
Our aim is to continue growing the Hub Australia business community and also deepen our member offering so we can better accelerate the growth for businesses who choose to base themselves at Hub spaces.
We also want to continue increasing the opportunities for our members to work internationally through our connection with the League of Extraordinary Coworking Spaces (LExC), a global network of exceptional coworking spaces.
