Co-Working Space Industrious Opens In Minneapolis

The Twin Cities co-working scene just got a little more crowded as newcomer Industrious opened its doors Monday.
 
The company created the 20,000-square-foot space at RBC Plaza in downtown Minneapolis due to the region’s strong companies and a fast-growing start-up scene that needs space to grow.
 
“The Twin Cities has a culture of co-working,” Industrious’ Minneapolis community manager, Kait Dougherty said. “So it’s a strong market to offer a new service.”
 
The region is no stranger to co-working spaces. The biggest name in town is CoCo, with locations in downtown Minneapolis, St. Paul, Uptown and Northeast Minneapolis. But there are also several other, smaller companies providing a similar service.
 
Industrious differentiates itself by putting a heavy emphasis on private, glass-encased office spaces that offer shared common areas with high-end finishes, including a coffee bar, conference rooms and spots to unwind. They have 60 private offices—starting at $600 per month—while only offering up 10 slots for those who are happy to work out in an open area.
 
The company also forgoes any lower-tier memberships, like some offered by CoCo, which limit access to a specific number of days per week.
 
Perhaps one of the biggest perks is the diverse spread of industries represented by members, according to Dougherty.
 
“What you see in our other locations is that we’re not just focused on startups,” she said. “We’ve got members in advertising and marketing, law, engineering and computer science. It creates very interesting conversations and professional opportunities.”
 
The space has already snagged its first big name: Instacart, the company that’s working with big brands like Target to deliver goods to customers’ homes, is bringing its Minneapolis team there.
 
The Minneapolis office is Industrious’ seventh location. It first opened in Chicago two years ago and has since expanded to St. Louis, Philidelphia, Atlanta and Columbus, Ohio. Offices in Raleigh, North Carolina and Brooklyn open soon. Its head office is in New York.
 
Another co-working company with Chicago roots, Assemble, is also opening later this year just a block away along the light rail line.