SALT LAKE CITY — When initially walking into the newly renovated space at 150 S. State, among the first things visitors might notice is a mix of new décor incorporated with the original 19th-century features of the historic downtown building.
In a similar way, the old space is being repurposed to provide innovators with room in which they could launch the next great idea in the world of social entrepreneurism.
Impact Hub Salt Lake — a member-based organization that provides networking for socially and environmentally conscientious business leaders — officially opened its doors this week on the first two levels of a 119-year-old, five-story, 58,000-square-foot building located near the heart of downtown.
Originally opened in 1896 as a manufacturing building for carriages and farm equipment, the building had been the home of Zim's arts and crafts products for 62 years until 2008, explained co-founder and president Søren Simonsen, who was also the principal architect on the $2 million project.
As the anchor tenant, Impact Hub Salt Lake provides affordable and collaborative co-working space for social entrepreneurs, Simonsen explained.
Social entrepreneurship describes a new generation of business leaders who are working not only to make a living, but to make a difference as well, he said.
“Innovation is most often the result of collaboration, and the layering and multiplying of ideas,” he said. “Impact Hub represents a microcosm of how cities came to be. People coming together, as a community, to solve problems and cross-pollinate ideas.”
He said Impact Hub is essentially “a modern-day town square” that brings people and ideas together and moves them forward.
The Salt Lake hub is No. 76 of the global incubator network that started in London in 2005 and today includes locations in numerous countries and over 11,000 members worldwide.
“The Impact Hub offers opportunity for everyone, whether you’re a startup nonprofit, an entrepreneur experiencing early stages of growth or an established business,” explained co-founder and CEO Dustin Haggett, who first became interested in the concept while completing his graduate studies in sustainable management.
“I didn’t know such a community existed and was immediately impressed by the energy of the people and the variety of projects and ventures incubating there. Startup life can be difficult and there is something intriguing about sharing a space with other like-minded entrepreneurs who have an interest in your success,” he said.
Haggett said the local hub already has 200 members and has targeted a goal of achieving 300 members by 2020. While the vast majority of members operate outside of the hub location, there are 18 more established companies that have permanent offices in the building.
Memberships range from $35 to $300 per month. The least expensive “connect” membership allows basic access to resources, while the highest-level membership offers numerous other benefits, including workshops and workspace amenities.
Digital marketing firm Igniter occupies a first floor office. CEO Nick Ethan said he appreciates the co-working environment and opportunity to interact with other like-minded individuals and new companies on the rise.
“It’s invigorating to be in an environment where everybody is in the same boat,” said Jamie Rugg, Igniter business development and operations manager. “The energy that’s in here and growing is getting better every week. It’s not something that we could create on our own in our own office.”
Besides the communal benefits of working in a diverse workspace, there are also other pluses that make membership advantageous, explained Sarah Knight, program director for Child Rescue Association of North America — an organization that focuses on eradicating child sex exploitation and human trafficking of children — that also occupies a first floor office.
“(Economically speaking), we’re just getting a big 'bang for our buck,'” she said. “There is (also) the networking aspect and having so many like-minded people here. We’re constantly making great connections.”
It is those kinds of positive interactions that Simonsen and Haggett hope to build upon as the hub expands in the years to come.
“The magic that happens is really the community that we build here through the co-working space, the networking events, along with the education and other programming that we do,” Simonsen said.
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