The Office Group

A lovely and inviting space with great décor, but style is winning out over substance. This co-​working space is probably one of the prettiest I’ve experienced, but that’s where it’s pros begin and end.
The staff were unhelpful, the wifi was painful to the point where most of us opted to tether, our stuff had been strewn all over the room we had booked and there was an eery silence throughout the halls that I have never experienced at a co-​working venue. Definitely no sense of community or the occupying businesses working together in any way.
For a short term fix to host a conference it did the job. It was comfortable and a reasonable space to spend a few days but as far as long term… it reminded me why I enjoy not having an office any more.

Martinique wallpaper, aka the iconic banana leaf wallpaper first used in The Beverly Hills Hotel, might make your office space look slick, alas looks aren’t everything.
The Office Group, located at The Emporium end of Fortitude Valley, is a venue for short-​term hire as we had for a 2.5day conference or longer term office needs. It’s not prime real estate for hot desking however freelancing friends.
It ticked off so many needed boxes including location and facilities (full kitchenette, white board, wifi) however the receptionist, also our main contact during the week, could not have looked more pained to be there. Her temperament was as up and down as the hot then cold swing of the air conditioning in our room.
Fixing these few experiential issues could see The Office Group soar into a venue that might provide corporate services but doesn’t need to look stuffy corporate and doesn’t act it to succeed either.

Co-​working spaces are popping up like coffee shops at the moment. You could even say they’re the new hipster. Or not, I’m not entirely sure that makes sense.
This one is tucked around the corner from Fortitude Valley train station and just off the main road, and it’s got a lot going for it but there are a few bugbears — the Myport wi-​fi system is … what’s the opposite of intuitive? Let’s go with difficult. You need to sign in with a password but it logs you out pretty often and sometimes the password won’t work when you try and get back in. Guh.
Other than that the facilities are neat, compact, and I like some of the room designs, from two-​man contract numbers up to big ol’ meeting rooms for your whole national team (Hi Unilocal APAC!).