BNZ opens co-working space in Christchurch – and it’s free!

What?  Community101 – a shared workspace for New Zealand businesses in the Christchurch CBD Where?  111 Cashel Street, Christchurch When?  Mon-Fri 9-4.30, from March 20, 2017 onward Who?  Any New Zealand small to medium sized business How?  Book your desk or meeting room via the online booking platform.

Christchurch has certainly had a rough time of it, which has seen the community prove that it's full of strong, resourceful and collaborative people.

BNZ is looking to celebrate that with the announcement that they've opened a free co-working space for small to medium enterprises in Christchurch's CBD – called community101.

Christchurch is home to a plethora of businesses from different sectors. However, these businesses were and still affected by the earthquakes, with many facing staff shortages, a fall in demand, lack of infrastructure or destroyed premises.

A lot of businesses didn't even have a bricks and mortar premise to call home, but despite this, decided to stay and try and build something new.

Today the area is abuzz with construction as the CBD advances to a truly modern city.

BNZ decided they wanted to be a part of the rebuild by offering small business owners in the area a place where they can come and work and meet other entrepreneurs, supporting each other in growing their businesses.

Community101 is supplement to the BNZ store, providing a hot-desk system that can be booked in advance, or if you're lucky, on the spot – there are also three bookable meeting rooms.

The space is bolstered by the fact there is Wi-Fi, printing and perhaps best of all, free coffee. All you need to do is bring your laptop.

For any support needs, BNZ community manager Tamara Fischer will be on hand throughout the day.

What BNZ hopes is that the community101 space will be a unique, innovative and collaborative environment for small to medium enterprise businesses.

Their goal is to foster a culture of collaboration where the sharing of knowledge and ideas ultimately helps businesses thrive.

It could also be a great space for New Zealand business owners that aren't based in Christchurch but are want to test the waters there with space to work and expand their network.