Among the new locations, Impact Hub Salt Lake is opening soon in my hometown, where I will be renting some time in the space. This inspired me to look into the movement. I stopped by the first Hub location in the U.S. during a recent visit to Berkeley. Officially known as the Impact Hub Bay Area, located in a small, fourth-floor space in Berkeley, the proof of concept for the U.S. still operates with the trademark ethos of mission-driven entrepreneurship.
Amanda Spector, who runs the Berkeley facility, gave me a tour of the original location and introduced me to some of the entrepreneurs working in the space. She explained that the Berkeley Hub opened four years ago.
Amanda also told me that the same ownership group, Mission HUB, LLC, that operates the Berkeley location also operates the much larger San Francisco location and is now opening locations in Philadelphia and New York City.
Megan McFadden who leads communications for the group joined us to tell us more about the history of the Hub. She described the passion of the entrepreneurs who work in the Hubs as sharing a common “intentionality” for making a difference.
Just a few weeks ago, I visited with one of the three owners of the Bay Area Hub, Tim Freundlich, who also serves as the Executive Director of Impact Assets. His passion for the Hub mission was evident even during our discussion—which was recorded from the Impact Hub San Francisco—about impact investing.
Kevin Jones, one of the other owners of the Bay Area Hubs, reported, “I'm passionate about the Hub because I've seen people make the connections, find the mentors, partners, peers, employees and investors that take their social enterprises to the next level, to enable them to enact their dreams to build a better world. We built the Impact Hub as a place where visionaries and doers could meet and make magic together. It's working, and it's growing. It's expanding in the U.S. and in the world because it's working.”
Rosa Lee Harden, the third owner, shared, “When I go to the Impact Hub, I am inspired by the work that amazing people are doing for the good of people and planet, working to eradicate poverty and create prosperity for all. One of the most energizing things about being at the Hub is the connections I make for my work, and the people I able to introduce to each other who just show up there. It's a town square for people who are working to change the world for good.”
McFadden also shared a sample of some of the companies working out of the Bay Area Hubs:
- Senda Athletics - Fair trade soccer
- Beyond12 - Support low-income and underrepresented students
- Peers - Member organization supporting the sharing economy
- AgLocal - Connecting people around responsibly-raised meats
- Sustainable Apparel Coalition - Measure the environmental performance of apparel products
- New Media Ventures - Network of angel investors supporting progressive media & tech entrepreneurs
- B Lab - The nonprofit behind GIIRS & B Corporation
Luke Pustejovsky, one of the entrepreneurs who works out of the Impact Hub Bay Area in Berkeley, shared some of his story with me. As a successful, serial entrepreneur he now leads a consulting practice helping other social entrepreneurs, especially those with an emphasis on sustainability.
In Salt Lake, the team behind the launch of the new Hub to be located in a historic downtown building where horse-drawn wagons were once manufactured includes Dustin Haggett and Soren Simonsen.
Haggett explained his motivation for bringing the Hub to Salt Lake City, “I first experienced Impact Hub in San Francisco while in graduate school. I didn't know such a community existed and I was impressed by the energy of the people and the variety of projects and ventures incubating there. Start-up 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. When I realized that Impact Hub is part of a global community I knew we had to open a space here in Utah.”
Simonsen, an architect who sits on the Salt Lake City Council, notes, “There are so many people with the spark of great ideas that can become a force for good in their community and the world. What I find through the Impact Hub network and co-working space is an opportunity to provide direction and momentum to ignite these sparks. So many people want to work for a purpose—not just work in a job, or work for a company. Impact Hub will be an incredible business resource in Salt Lake City, connecting and brightest minds both locally and globally to create outstanding results. This is a true 21st century workplace.”
Spector explained that the individual Hubs operate under a “Federated” model, that is, the Hubs are independently owned and operated but share branding and certain back-office functions.
A new Hub location is about to open in Oakland, just down the road from the Berkeley location. Spector explained with evident enthusiasm that despite the fact that the owners of the new location in the Bay Area are not connected to the team that owns the Berkeley and San Francisco locations, everyone in the Hub community has been supportive of the new launch.
In order to finance the launch, the Oakland Hub raised over $100,000 through a crowdfunding campaign. The Salt Lake team has also launched a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo to help finance the build-out of their new location; they’ve set a goal of $50,000.
Please help me continue this conversation by commenting below, on Twitter at @devindthorpe and my on personal website YourMarkOnTheWorld.com.
