The Hive Philly is a co-working space for women in Old City. Founded by Melissa Alam, The Hive provides women of all ages and backgrounds a space to work with a community full of like-minded women. I had a chance last week to stop by The Hive and sit down with Alam about the space's design, what keeps her organized, and her desk must haves.
FAYMEPROBLEMS: What were you trying to achieve when designing the space?
Melissa Alam: First and foremost budget. The Hive is bootstrapped. I wanted it to be budget friendly so a lot of thrifting went into designing it. I definitely did not want it to just be an Ikea space that felt very robotic and drone like. I wanted a creative space that was also comfortable. I mixed and matched a lot of stuff that I had collected over the years with Ikea, Target, thrift stores like Jinxed and Goodwill. So I really like that eclectic design. In terms of the rest of the space, I really wanted it to be like you were entering a really cool girlfriend's apartment and working out of that type of space. I think that a a lot of female entrepreneurs are already use to working out of their friend's apartments. So I wanted to emanate that but also create a professional space for them to meet with their clients. Really quirky but thrifty and fun.
FP: Tell me about the piece that hangs that reads "The Hive."
MA: That was created by Aubrie Costello. She is awesome. I have seen her work and I definitely wanted her to be involved somehow to create silk graffiti for The Hive. At first I wanted a saying. Something inspirational for female entrepreneurs. But then I realized the best thing would be just to have "The Hive" written. It has been the best branded piece I have had here in the space.
FP: What do you seek in your own work environment?
MA: I love natural sunlight. It is good to work in a room with windows. So The Hive has amazing windows and light which is why I loved this space in the first place. I also love organization. I can't work if my desk is a mess. I have to organize it or clean it or just hide it.
FP: How do you organize yourself?
MA: When it gets to the point of no return, I start digging in. I deal with it. I got a really good piece of advice from a friend who said, "You can have a lot of stuff, but keep it in a way where people can't see it." I got this great storage ottoman from Geekadelphia. They bought that for us as a gift so I hide a lot of crap in there. I like things that have a multipurpose function that look great but you can hide clutter in. There are a lot of nooks and crannies here that hide stuff.
- a: "We have cold brew delivered to The Hive by this great local company Coley Coffee."
- b: Iphone case by Ban.do.
- c: Jumbo sticky notepad and pen by Poppin. "I love having a jumbo sticky notepad right by my side because it is the perfect size for my ideas."
- d: "This phone was a gift from our Director of Communications, Sara Kelly. I love having it by my side because it makes the place feel little fancier."
- e: Canon 6D Camera.