Phoenix area businesses find strength in numbers, embrace co-working

The space inside Phoenix's Co+Hoots (825 N. 7th Street) sounds like a typical office: the click-clack of key strokes; the steady murmur of hands-free calls to far-off clients; the hoots, hollers and applause when one sends over a batch of gourmet brownies.

In reality, the 20 or so workers in the downtown Phoenix office work for a handful of small creative companies that are growing and, by most accounts, thriving in an otherwise downtrodden economy. The co-working concept adopted by Co+Hoots is, well, working.

Co-working isn't a new idea, according to Co+Hoots founder Jenny Poon, but it is relatively new to Phoenix.

Co+Hoots is housed inside the spacious, architecturally interesting JB Bayless building, which was built in 1926 as one of downtown Phoenix's first grocery stores. 15 small, local businesses run day-to-day operations out of the building, including PR reps, landscape architects, software developers, photographers, graphic designers and real estate agents, and they're all stationed at desks in one giant, wide open room. Other business owners and creatives regularly drop in unannounced to utilize communal desk and meeting spaces.

Co+Hoots operates like a co-op – each resident business pays $350 a month, while drop-ins pay $10 per day, with additional fees for use of the space for events and conference room meetings. When the building is near capacity and runs in the green, as it does now, any profits are pumped back into the infrastructure of the operation for new desks or equipment.

The airy layout of the building and mission of the co-working format encourages collaboration between business owners – clients are shared and referred and ideas and inspiration are bounced off the exposed brick walls – and both residents and drop-ins feed off the sharing, said Tony Felice, one of Co-Hoots' core, founding members. Felice owns Tony Felice PR, a firm that represents both local and international clients, from bakers to banks.

"It can get a little hectic at times, especially when we're full, [but] this is so powerful, because we're constantly knowing what everyone is doing, we're giving each other ideas" Felice said. "It's this constant free-flow."

Poon started her own business in 2009, a design and branding boutique called eeko studio, and operated out of her house. She soon wanted to expand eeko and looked for suitable office space in the Phoenix area, but found that most properties were either too expensive, didn't fit the vibe of her creative-minded company or both.

 In partnership with Felice and three other small business owners with similar goals for growth, Poon launched Co+Hoots in July 2010 and has seen the building fill to near capacity.

In one year, Felice has seen his PR firm grow from a one-man show to a company with five employees.

 "Business is always changing and that was when the economy was really bad," Poon said. "And it's still suffering… so we wanted an easy step for small businesses and give them a step to grow without the risk of losing your business if you can't pay rent."

Start-ups often blossom in times of economic hardship. But it's difficult to sell clients operating out of a home office, and it's nearly impossible to afford office space for a business with only a handful of employees, Poon said. Joining forces was the reasonable option.

"We don't run our businesses like a corporate company. We're all independent, so the idea is that we're paying for a space, but we don't want to pay $3,000 a month for our own individual space and then be tied to a three-year lease," Poon said.

"I don't think we could get this space without the downfall of the economy because real estate would be really expensive, Poon added. "Like, in a normal market, this space would be ridiculous."

The demand for space in Co+Hoots allows the group of five core businesses to be selective about whom they allow into the co-working circle. The businesses operating out of the space are generally in creative fields, though a real estate firm recently claimed a corner of the office.

"We have a process where, if someone approaches us and wants to join, we get to know them, introduce them to other team members and take a vote of the founding members," Felice said. "And it's really worked out well for us because the people here are cool. They all have that same kind of, I like to call it, ‘CenPho, Tempe energy,' you know."

Co+Hoots has latched on to the energy of nearby Roosevelt Row and ASU's downtown campus, too. The building is open for Artlink's monthly First Friday Artwalk and hosts regular art and cultural events, like the unicorn-themed art show that Phoenix-based non-profit SailBear earlier this month. Sculptural elements hang from the ceiling and a bright red phone booth is parked in the back of the communal space.