Luis Barrios is the community engagement manager for Sprout RI, a co-working community located inside Rising Sun Mills in Providence. Barrios spoke to Providence Business News about Sprout’s clientele and partnerships.
PBN: Why do you think co-working spaces are gaining popularity?
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BARRIOS: Modern co-working has been around since 2005, and has gained rapid popularity in bigger cities like New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. In the past few years, co-working has been growing in smaller cities like Providence due to the fact that entrepreneurs, freelancers, startups and remote workers want to have their own workspace without the need for a long-term contract and they want to be able to grow without the commitment of staying in one place. Nowadays, it’s common to find freelancers and remote workers that get their work done with the flexibility of moving from place to place and seeing the world, because their job can be done remotely. Co-working also offers access to a network of like-minded people who may be their next client, partner or employer.
PBN: What sort of clients do you aim to appeal to at Sprout? Is co-working more popular with certain industries or demographics than others?
BARRIOS: In the past two years, we’ve seen many different types of people, businesses and entrepreneurs become members of Sprout. It’s hard to say whether we tend to attract a specific industry or demographic, but I can say that we have had a lot of lawyers become members for the flexibility of space and use of our meeting rooms to meet with clients.
In general, though, the majority of our members tend to work for themselves or with a small team of fewer than five people. They’re entrepreneurs, startups, freelancers and remote workers, who look for flexibility in their memberships and space to grow in size and space as they become more successful.
PBN: What is Sprout’s pricing for members versus nonmembers? Can anyone rent out space at Sprout for a private or public event?
BARRIOS: Sprout offers six different types of memberships: Virtual, Cafe and Hot Desk access, as well as Brown, Blue and Private offices. Our Virtual membership costs $50 per month for a Providence mailing address only. Cafe membership costs $75 per month and includes access to our cafe-area seating from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., while Hot Desk membership costs $200 per month and offers 24/7 access to our hot-desk seating and standing desks.
Our Brown and Blue open offices start at $450 per month for a dedicated workspace and lockable storage, and Private offices start at $850 per month with two, 24/7-access memberships included. All memberships include general amenities such as a Providence mailing address; 5G Wi-Fi access; free coffee and snacks; free use of our meetings rooms; access to printers, scanners and copiers; access to the Rising Sun Mills picnic area and fitness center; and plenty of free parking.
Nonmembers can definitely book our meeting rooms and our cafe area for events. Our meeting room rates for nonmembers start at $40 per hour for our Valley and Courtyard meeting rooms, which seat six, and $60 per hour for our Conference Center, which seats 18. Use of our cafe area depends on the time and type of event, but rates start at $90 per hour. For additional information about our memberships and rates, visit www.sproutcoworking.com.
PBN: How does Sprout’s Base Camp Program work? Is the program currently sponsoring any entrepreneurs or startup companies?
BARRIOS: Our Base Camp Program underwrites one year at Sprout for selected startups and entrepreneurs, funded by businesses or corporations looking to support economic and business development in Rhode Island. The program will provide sponsored businesses and entrepreneurs with a place to work, hold meetings and run programs. Development, support and broad-based opportunities for collaboration are also available. Sprout selects participants based on its standard criteria and/or the criteria of our funders. Funders may also select participants or create innovation programs for participants focused on corporate objectives and initiatives. We offer three funding levels (Platinum, Gold and Silver) to support anywhere between four and 16 growing businesses in Rhode Island.
PBN: How have Sprout’s partnerships with the Rhode Island Business Plan Competition and others helped to spread the word about co-working in Rhode Island? Do you have any other plans or partnerships in the works?
BARRIOS: Sprout’s partnership with the Rhode Island Business Plan Competition has helped us spread the word about Sprout and raise awareness about co-working by offering competition participants free use of our co-working space and meeting rooms for two months. This not only gives participants a place to continue working on and growing their businesses in a comfortable and innovative space, but it also makes Sprout the Providence hub for new businesses, innovative ideas and co-working.
We are also continuing to grow the Sprout brand and are dedicated to show our commitment to growing Rhode Island business and economy. At this moment, we’re working on partnerships with both AIGA [American Institute of Graphic Arts] and the Institute of Entrepreneurship & Leadership, to help other creatives and entrepreneurs grow and thrive in Rhode Island.
Galen Auer is a PBN contributing writer. Email galen.auer@gmail.com or follow on Twitter at @PBNAuer.
