Westchester workspaces are evolving rapidly. Freelancers, solopreneurs, and small and even large companies can choose from a variety of office arrangements that meet their specific needs for companionship or privacy, security or open access, with choices like cubicles, communal worktables, or suites of luxurious offices protected under lock and key. Welcome to the world of flex space.
“With co-working, temp space, and executive suites, it’s become a much broader market,” says Adam Stark, president of the nine-location Stark Office Suites. “It’s self-selecting as to where people end up.” Stark’s 11-year-old company provides traditional executive offices to clients who benefit from shared amenities like receptionists, conference rooms, and phone services. The company’s 800 clients tend to be established professionals who need flexibility.
“Let’s say you’re a consultant who lives in Bedford. You can work out of our Mount Kisco location as your main office, but you can also meet clients in our Manhattan or Greenwich locations,” Stark explains.
“You don’t have to be self-employed to decide where you work everyday.”
At the other end of the spectrum is Ground Floor Coworking in New Rochelle. “This isn’t just a place to work,” says founder Miriam Gilwit. “It’s a place to join a community of professionals who have an entrepreneurial spirit that will help take your business to the next level.” The 2,000-square-foot space opened this year and provides shared or dedicated desks, a private office, conference room, and opportunities to network with kindred entrepreneurial souls.
Members are offered workshops on subjects like QuickBooks and have happy hours, to help break the ice with others in the facility. Access is available through monthly memberships and 10-day or daily rates. You can walk in for $30 a day or rent the conference room for $50 an hour.
Serendipity Labs in Rye (pictured at right) combines features of co-working spaces, meeting and event venues, and traditional business center office suites, according to founder John Arenas: “We’re a bit of a hybrid—sort of corporate co-working.” As Arenas explains, his corporate clients demonstrate that “you don’t have to be self-employed to decide where you work every day.”
Serendipity’s concept has three parts. The first involves spaces conducive to connection and meeting up, called Work Lounge, Lab Café, and Work Bar. Next is a set of meeting rooms for collaboration and ideation. These spaces also are home to various educational/networking events, like Westchester Tech Meetup, a women’s entrepreneur group, and a members-only Tesla test-drive event. The third part of the facility includes dedicated workstations in an open-plan space and individual lock-and-key offices.
Serendipity Labs’ clientele range from major corporations like GE Healthcare and Pepsi to a hedge fund whose partners use Serendipity Labs as a secondary office. Currently, Serendipity has more than 50 co-owned and/or franchised locations around the country—a number Arenas expects to double this year.
