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Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Cowork Through it

This business model remains steady in Evansville.

Editor’s Note: After the June/July 2023 issue of Evansville Business went to press, The Coworking Cottage announced it was closing Aug. 1.

Cowork Evansville launched in 2018 at Innovation Pointe, and in the February/March 2019 Evansville Business article “Work Together,” “coworking” still was a local buzzword. Having endured a pandemic in the time since, is the same still true?

When Frank Peterlin IV, owner of Market Realty, first got into what was called the “executive suite” business in 1996, large companies were interested in leasing an entire office. Today’s market has expanded for individuals. Now, renting a desk for a day at a local coworking space can cost around $20, and monthly memberships for access to a conference room can go for more than $300. Peterlin, who now runs coworking and business service provider U.S. Incubator, notices more startups and freelancers using his leased spaces.

Lisa Kelsey Moore, who owns and operates The Foundry on Main at 100 N. Main St.,
says demand has exceeded expectations since opening in 2021. Most of the interest in her coworking space is from remote workers who travel and businesses needing to rent a communal workspace.

“There is still a lot of community engagement needed to define what coworking is and how it can be helpful,” says Elizabeth Alvarez, who opened Newburgh, Indiana’s Coworking Cottage at 117 Plum St. in 2021. “With many businesses now requiring their teams to be back in the office, that is definitely going to impact us.”

Cowork Evansville remains at Innovation Pointe, 318 Main St., and is run by the Evansville Regional Economic Partnership. On the residential side, coworking space comes as a perk for Post House tenants at 215 Vine St.

Maggie Valenti
Maggie Valenti
Maggie Valenti joined Tucker Publishing Group in September 2022 as a staff writer. She graduated from Gettysburg College in 2020 with a bachelors degree in English. A Connecticut native, Maggie has ridden horses for 15 years and has hunt seat competition experience on the East Coast.

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