What are the key ingredients for success? Opinions may vary, but the well-researched, driven and compassionate masterminds behind the Reyada Collaborative Workspace might just have the answer: Stunning, ultra modern workspaces currently available for rent.
“When we were living abroad, we would frequent collaborative spaces to get our work done, and upon moving back to Kuwait we noticed a niche in the market that would facilitate small to medium businesses,” says Talal Al-Ajeel, one of Reyada’s four partners. That’s exactly what Reyada poses as: a facilitator to entrepreneurs, and a home away from home to help you get all your eggs in a basket, sans distraction, and with high productivity.
The Reyada space, nestled on the 24th floor of Crystal Tower situated in the heart of the city, is vast and organized in a way to accommodate all of its members and visitors. Opened in the beginning of May, the space holds an array of different offices and workspaces to cater to all types of memberships.
First off, you choose from two different memberships: Coworking and Dedicated, which both carry two different options under their umbrella. If you’re a freelancer, someone who already has an office, or you frequent Kuwait on business and need somewhere to get work done, you can choose the Originator membership. It’s pay as you go, where you have access to the collaborative workspace from 9 am to 9 pm, as well as one hour of the meeting room and all the basic amenities Reyada has to offer, starting at KD 15 per day, hence the “pay as you go” concept. The Resident Coworking Membership includes daily access to the co-working space from 9-9, three hours per month of access to the meeting room, and all the amenities Reyada offers, all for KD 100 per month.
If you’re a night owl or a believer in the notion that teamwork makes the dream work, the Dedicated Membership might be for you. For a Dedicated Desk membership, at KD 175 per month, you get 24/7 access to the space with four hour access to the meeting room, and the KD 300 per month Private Office option buys you the same perks only with a five hour allowance to the meeting room. The great thing about the Dedicated memberships is that your offices truly become yours. Whether you’ve claimed a desk in a four-person office that you’re sharing with three other people or you have something all to yourself, for the duration of your membership you can pop in after hours using your provided pin code to access the space, and leave your belongings there overnight without worry, because you have a key to keep your space locked up.
There are a lot of perks that come along with being a member at Reyada, including high-speed internet, access to hot and cold beverages replenished daily, full access to the lounge areas, parking and priority workshop and event access. Obviously, Dedicated members get a few additional perks pertaining to the nature of their memberships (fully furnished private offices with daily cleaning) but all memberships, with the exception of Originator membership, get the advantage of the Member Benefit Program which will be launching with more details this July. What’s not to look forward to?
When Reyada’s four partners and creators collaborated in launching the space, their vision was to have all entrepreneurs of the business-rich nation join forces and create a community of inspiration and productivity. “By creating a “membership” system, we don’t intend to imply an exclusivity to the space, but a sense of being a part of a community. We don’t like calling our tenants “tenants” – they’re part of a community that we’re facilitating for people to collaborate and communicate,” says Talal, as he guides us around the office’s sleek, modern rooms. “What’s great about this space is that we provide what the community needs. The economy lacks small to medium business facilitators – especially those who provide a space for like-minded individuals who at the end of the day can expand each other’s aspirations and go to their businesses hand in hand.”
With Reyada in function, said like-minded individuals with different backgrounds can discover each other and collaborate with ease, all while working in the same space. Example, a freelance writer who needs a photographer can likely knock on the neighboring office’s door or scout the co-working space for a freelance photographer, and the chances are they’ll find one, thus creating a new team.
The space also aims to focus on social responsibility, working hand in hand with non-profit organizations like INJAZ-Kuwait, LOYAC, and Nuqat – in fact, Nuqat’s Tamkeen program has been taken over by Reyada and will be housed in the space, to promote design and creative entrepreneurship – a facet that Reyada feels strongly about.
Reyada will open its doors to other events and workshops to the public and members alike: from independent film screenings to lectures and seminars, promoting organizations such as Hikma, a positive social awareness campaign. To them, it is vital to follow the ethos of a creativity, knowledge and collaboration to only enhance and nurture a community with such potential.
Community is key in this modern workspace where the vibe is collaborative and the creative juices flow. The space is abuzz with ideas and encouragement – from the communal “help yourself” coffee bar in the co-working area to the resident built-in white board where ideas, notes, inspirational messages and contact details are all shared. The mere fact that people can meet and greet, brainstorm and collaborate with such ease, marrying different backgrounds (and different home and business bases throughout the region) is valuable in and of itself. It’s clear that this space was designed for great things to happen, and that, as Talal puts it, the space promotes “a community of professionals and hard working individuals who at the end of the day will bring better products to market and create better connectivity amongst each other.”
As he stands before Reyada’s appropriate trademark, copyrighted slogan scrawled on the space’s front wall, “Together, We Create”, Talal leaves us with these equally inspirational words: “There’s a nation that has a very bright future with a very young population that needs catering to and facilitating to – that being said, hard work never stops, neither do your dreams. Focus on them fully because there’s definitely a goal to be achieved” and we vehemently believe that Reyada will be just the space to achieve your goals in.
Reyada is located on the 24th floor of the Crystal Tower on Soor Street in Kuwait City. Follow them on Instagram @reyada_co. For more information, call them at 5565 4747, and for detailed information on membership, visit their website at www.reyada.co.
Photograpghy by Muneera AlKhulaifi
