The Collective: A new way for individuals to work, create new businesses
A Grand Island entrepreneur has created The Collective, a co-working space that reflects the changing ways Americans work and earn a living.
“Co-working is a bunch of individual people and businesses renting a space and being part of a group of like-minded people that work in close proximity,” said local developer Amos Anson.
The Collective is located in the Hedde Building at 202 W. Third in Grand Island’s Railside District. Anson and his partner, Tom Pirnie, joined forces and purchased the building, which dates back to the late 1800s. It was built by Fredrick Hedde, an entrepreneur and one of Grand Island’s founding fathers.
It was Hedde’s spirit that Anson created The Collective. Hedde saw the business potential of Grand Island more than 140 years ago. Anson sees that potential now and well into the future. And as times change, so does the way business is conducted. That is what The Collective is all about.
Anson said that, several years ago, there were co-working spaces all over the world, but not in Grand Island. To see if it would work locally, he created a small designated space above McKinney’s at 123 W. Third so he could test his idea before making a larger financial commitment.
“I thought there was a need for it,” Anson said. He saw how America’s workforce was transitioning and changing during the digital revolution, and felt a need to bring Grand Island into that new age of possibilities.
Co-working is defined as a group of people, working independently or in small groups at different jobs or projects, who assemble in a neutral space. It is not an office space in the traditional sense as many of the people are either self-employed or work for a larger company. Anson said people can rent a desk or they can rent a small office.
Over the years, co-working spaces were used by digital nomads, who traveled a lot and worked remotely, and freelancers. Co-working space also served the needs of remote entrepreneurs and remote corporate employees.
According to www.commercialobserver.com, a recent survey found that small-to-medium sized enterprises made up nearly 38% of the users of co-working spaces, and startup teams made up another 27%.
Anson said the idea is simple as the client pays a rental fee for the space, utilities and services provided, and can rent the space for a week, a month or a year.
“Hopefully, the idea is that they can grow their business and move to a bigger spot,” Anson said.
Over the years, the Hedde Building has seen many businesses come and go. In later years, it fell into disrepair as many downtown businesses moved west to the Highway 281 corridor. More than 10 years ago, Downtown Grand Island began experiencing an awaking that saw a host of new businesses — restaurants, retail, bars, the Grand Theatre, professional services, etc. — begin moving back to city’s historic area.
As more and more entrepreneurs, businessmen and developers began to reshape and breathe life back into Downtown Grand Island, they rebranded themselves Railside, which reflects Grand Island historic connection to the Transcontinental railroad built after the American Civil War. That railroad linked the East and West coasts into a growing nation.
Along with the co-working spaces, The Collective will also have several service and retail businesses. Kalon Styling Salon was the first business in the The Collective.
The space also features a small kitchenette, a conference center, classroom and other shared services.
The conference center and classroom spaces are fully wired with modern internet electronics that can be used for a variety of purposes, such as an independent podcaster who doesn’t want to invest in expensive equipment, but use the equipment Anson will have available.
The Hedde Building is also the new home of the Hall County/Grand Island Visitors and Convention Bureau and 11 upstairs apartments.
The Collective also has a pop-up shop. Pop-up retail, also known as pop-up store or flash retailing, is a trend of opening short-term sales spaces that last for days to a few weeks before closing down. The pop-up space also provides someone a temporary space to try out a idea they have for a business and give it a trial run.
Micheal Rivera of Nebraska Realty moved his operation into The Collective on July 1. He moved back from Omaha to Grand Island, his hometown, to begin a location here for the company he works for.
“I was looking for a small space and I wanted to be near the hustle and bustle of Downtown Grand Island,” Rivera said.
Rivera said he was interested in the Hedde Building as Anson made progress on it, and contacted Anson about locating his office there.
“It is a good fit,” Rivera said. “The amenities are wonderful with the conference room and classroom for bring in a client instead of using your home.”
Robert Pore, “The Collective: A new way for individuals to work, create new businesses” The Grand Island Independent, July 19, 2020, accessed July 20, 2020,
https://theindependent.com/news/local/the-collective-a-new-way-for-individuals-to-work-create-new-businesses/article_86f1de26-c93b-11ea-9dd6-135100244351.html
Image: The Independent/Barrett Stinson
