Coworking spaces change the way startups and young businesses operate. They combine the top-notch amenities of stand-alone office buildings with an affordable price tag. This makes them attractive to feisty business owners looking to up-level their operations.

As coworking spaces continue to rise in popularity, so do their amenities. With perks like 24/7 onsite gyms, meeting and training rooms, catered lunches, and printing stations, shared spaces help entrepreneurs transition from their living rooms and neighborhood coffee shops to fully-functioning office spaces.

Great coworking spaces , however, offer less obvious amenities that alleviate some of the stressors of starting and growing a business. At MAC6, for example, we provide flexible workspaces and lease terms that allow you to scale seamlessly without having to uproot your business and move elsewhere. Not every coworking space offers this level of flexibility. However, all great coworking spaces should have amenities that allow tenants to grow their footprint or their culture within the space. After all, close proximity to other businesses breeds opportunities to network within the coworking space. This can mean a quick influx of new business and rapid growth.

Solopreneurs, startup owners, or even established businesses can leverage the less obvious amenities of a coworking space to benefit their organizations in many different ways. Here are four of these “hidden” amenities you should consider if you’re considering a coworking space:

#1 Customizable Space

Great coworking spaces allow companies to customize their environment to suit their culture. Even on the main coworking floor at MAC6, companies decorate and outfit their desk spaces to make them their own. Companies that occupy private office suites have even more freedom to make their spaces uniquely theirs.

If people do their best work sitting on a comfortable couch, they should have the option to do that. If they need the structure of a more traditional desk, it should be available for them. Great coworking spaces provide the “amenity” of allowing companies to customize their spaces. It’s an often-overlooked amenity, but it’s a critical one if you want to find a longer-term home for your business.

#2 Community Vibe

The networking opportunities at a coworking space are unmatched. Collaboration is almost baked into the DNA of great coworking spaces. Facilitating the initial connection between businesses is something to consider when comparing the amenities of coworking spaces. How much effort does the company that owns the space put into hosting community events, educational seminars, or even social gatherings? If the parent company cares about the community within the space, you’ll see it in the interactions between companies. They won’t look like complete strangers when they cross paths.

If the companies are connected with each other, you never know what kind of collaboration or referral network will evolve.

#3 Flexible Environment

Even if you have a dedicated block of desks or a private office suite within the coworking space, sometimes you just want a change of scenery. Great coworking spaces give you the opportunity to take your laptop and change your environment once in awhile. They provide unique common areas that are open to every tenant. These areas function as either meeting spaces or refuges for workers who need a change in scenery to spark a creative boost. Consequently, this amenity benefits companies involved in creative work where brainstorm meetings and ideation is key.

#4 Talent Magnet

You’ll need to hire employees to keep up with new business demands. Even with the uptick in remote work policies, people still care about their office’s home base. If you’re headquartered out of a coworking space, do you use the perks associated with the space in your job descriptions? Are the perks offered by the space enough to make someone feel good about their work setting?

Give your recruitment efforts an edge by highlighting the perks of your coworking space to potential new hires. If there’s a full kitchen, mention it. If there’s an on-site gym, talk about it. What about some of the other points mentioned above? Will prospective employees like to work in a space where there’s flexibility in their environment or the ability to shut a door for privacy? If your coworking space offers little to woo prospective employees, it may not be the place you want to call home.

Check Off the Basics

The four “hidden” amenities listed above should make you think at a deeper level about coworking spaces and how they can benefit your business. There are plenty of more obvious or basic amenities you should look for, too. As you consider the deeper benefits that a coworking space provides, keep an eye out for what we consider amenity basics:

• 24/7 access
• Signage for your company
• Printers/Copiers
• Wireless internet
• Meeting rooms
• Large event space
• Phone rooms
• Video conferencing
• Smart board
• Cable TV
• On-site mail pickup
• Limited storage
• Kitchen
• Gym with 24/7 access
• 2 showers
• Free fitness classes
• Podcast room
• Access-controlled entry
• Nightly security patrols

The right workspace makes or breaks your company’s ability to grow and expand. We know because it’s a big part of what we do at MAC6.

Contact our team to learn more about our spaces if you think we’d be a good fit for your business.