Co-What?
You should learn the difference between a Coworks and Co-ops.
Our latest Update is going to break it all down for you.
People around Rochester sometimes mistakenly confuse co-op and co-work.
Why should you care?
There are big brain-gains and cost savings involved when working with an agency located in a cowork space. A Co-op? Not so much.
First, Livadas Consulting has nothing to do with co-ops. If you want to work with a co-op on your business, you’ll probably get nowhere.
That’s because a co-op is a place or organization where like-minded people voluntarily all pitch in together for a common social cause or purpose. Decisions are voted on and outsiders do not get a vote. What the co-ops produce as a group, they all own equally.
Great examples: Street Markets, Pottery Studios, Food Banks, etc.
Again, Livadas Consulting is not located in or apart of any artist co-ops.
So is Livadas Consulting a cowork?
No, but we’re inside of a cowork space.
Unlike most marketing agencies in Rochester, Livadas Consulting is physically located in a cowork space called Carlson Cowork.
We get a chuckle when Boomers mistakenly call it Carlson Co-op, because they’ve got the misconception that we’re all Woodstock-era college students living together with a shared purpose and vision.
A cowork is a place where people enjoy community and collaboration, but ultimately work for themselves and their business. The shared office space is where people work and help each other out with referrals, new ideas, and coffee. Cowork members don’t all work for the same causes and companies. Coworkers aren’t required to work together, but often end up collaborating as a result of organic bonds that form via the community spirit.
Carlson Cowork doesn’t exist in the circle of innovation drawn by our local government. We didn’t win a free-rent contest or receive economic stimulus subsidies. Carlson Cowork was formed organically in the tradition of other centers of innovation in Rochester. Members pay our own rent and share features of a typical office space such as kitchens, bathrooms, wifi, and conference rooms.
Livadas Consulting joined a volunteer team of members at Carlson Cowork who work on improving our web presence. We are currently in the process of creating a brand new website. In the meantime we want others to hear about what makes the Carlson Cowork so unique so we created a couple videos that we’ll be sharing (over the next couple weeks) leading up to the launch of our new website! Woo hoo!
Here’s video #3!
Holly Jennings is a freelance writer we met at CC and will be working with in 2016.
In our next Update on the confusing co’s, we’ll plan on explaining the difference between working with Contract Marketers, Collaboratives, and Collectives.
Instagram Photos: @bryanmarchtu, @jennsertl, @amycvena, @paulcarldigital, @mudgrovee, @chris.cooley, @explorerochester, @northwintonvillage
