A new coworking office is coming to Chicago next year.
Firmspace, an Austin-based coworking company, is slated to open a Chicago location in May 2021 in the Loop. At 145 S. Wells St., Firmspace has leased floors 17, 18 and 19 in the building, taking up more than 34,000 square feet, said CEO Anish Michael.
The office, currently under construction, will include 150 individual offices that vary in size, though most of the offices will be designed to accommodate just one worker. The largest office will hold about five desks.
Firmspace was founded in 2016 by and opened its first office in Austin in 2017. It now operates four offices throughout the U.S. The others are in Denver, Houston and Atlanta.
Michael said Firmspace is opening its fifth office in Chicago because the city already has a thriving coworking scene and thinks it can compete. Chicago is home to 12 WeWork locations, five Novel Coworking locations and several other smaller coworking offices.
“We’re really bullish on the opportunity to have a space in the Chicago market for the long term,” Michael told me. “There’s a big market for that.”
Firmspace Chicago office
Firmspace rates for a one-desk office in Chicago will be approximately $750 per month, a price comparable to the company’s Houston office starting rate, Firmspace said.
Firmspace says it differentiates itself by cutting down on communal space at its locations. While some other coworking companies emphasize large, public gathering areas at their offices, Firmspace focuses on what it calls “pro-working.”
“It’s a professional workplace for folks that need an opportunity to get away from distractions that may come in other environments,” Michael said. “Our memberships are based on private offices.”
The model also lends itself well to the Covid era, where if people are heading into the office, they likely want space from their peers.
“We’ve built a model that has been resistant to the pandemic because of our social distancing aspects and private offices,” Michael said. “We were already geared for social distancing and Covid, even before we knew what Covid was all about.”
While Firmspace offers some communal spaces, like a kitchen and lounge area, none of its memberships offer “hot-desks,” a concept offered by other coworking spaces that allows members to work at a communal table or desk for a cheaper fee.
Firmspace has kept its offices open throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, taking precautions by regularly sanitizing the office and requiring members to wear masks in all common areas.
