5 Juicy Moments from the Global Coworking Unconference
Highlights, insights, and the human stories that made GCUC London unforgettable.
I’m not long back from day two of GCUC London, and I’m feeling incredibly inspired.
The panel talks, the casual conversations during networking breaks, the tours…every curated aspect of the last two days brought people together who share a deep passion for coworking and the future of work.
As I look back on the last 24+ hours, I’d like to share my favourite moments:
1. Vanessa, the most exceptional MC
We can all get excited about coworking, but there’s one person who got us cheering, laughing and clapping throughout the day: Vanessa Belleau, the most exceptional MC. Wow, or rather “Wow, wow, wow” as Vanessa would say!
Vanessa was an absolute joy; she brought an incredible amount of energy and happiness to the event, and we all loved her enthusiasm. Vanessa listened to every talk, sharing key takeaways between panels. In her closing words, which almost moved us all to tears, Vanessa expressed how “this industry runs on people.” She’s spot on.
Two claps for Vanessa (IYKYK).
2. Brand activation and the true community work
GCUC is best known for its inspiring talks on the future of coworking. For me, two talks stood out in particular, the first on Foundry’s partnership with Legal & General.
Adam Walker left school at 17 to pursue entrepreneurship. He first built CRATE, a hybrid between WeWork and BoxPark, providing access to workspace for entrepreneurs in container units. Then, while touring a Barclays home a few years ago, Adam came up with the idea of workspace within a residential property. Adam sought a partnership with L&G to develop Foundry workspaces in build-to-rent properties in regional towns and the London ‘burbs.
Foundry features a forward-thinking workspace design concept. During the panel, Pamela D’Alessandro, Creative Lead at Interaction – the workspace design partners for the Foundry project – shared some of the key inspirations behind the design, including:
Accessibility was a major consideration in the design process – ensuring the space truly works for everyone, rather than feeling like an afterthought. Pamela highlighted that even small details, like the height of a table, can make a big difference for people with disabilities.
Technology can also create friction if not thoughtfully integrated. Pam emphasised the importance of ensuring your tech setup flows seamlessly throughout the workspace to support, not hinder, productivity.
Natural light is another key factor. Pam shared a striking insight: simply looking at nature or greenery can reduce cortisol levels by up to 30%. With that in mind, Foundry was designed with high-level windows to flood the space with daylight and maintain a strong connection to the outdoors.
Your product mix should also work hard for you – and it needs to evolve over time. Stay flexible and adapt your space as demographic needs shift.
Finally, the pace of workplace change is accelerating. Where companies once refreshed their spaces every five years, the new norm is closer to every two. That doesn’t mean a full renovation, even simple updates like changing artwork or refreshing wall colours can make a big impact.
Foundry prioritises bringing communities together, particularly local residential communities. This thread overlapped with Koral Ibrahim’s absolutely stand-out presentation on building future-ready brands in flex, which, although the last session of the day, left everyone absolutely buzzing.
Why? Koral’s work involves building a sense of belonging, activating community in space, and diving into why people congregate in certain places.
Collaborating on the New Acres project, where Foundry Wandsworth is located, Koral’s team curated events to activate the buildings, tapping into local communities and demographics.
For instance, having used data insights to learn that the target audience for New Acres shopped at Glassette, the design brand was invited to record their podcast in one of the BTR units. That kind of collaboration is epic.
3. Creating content that connects
Those sessions explored experiential concepts and how they build emotional connections within communities, rather than purely transactional ones. This theme flowed perfectly into my workshop yesterday on creating content that truly connects.
Instead of diving into marketing jargon or technical frameworks, I wanted to bring a more human approach to the discussion. As an icebreaker, I asked everyone to write down how their favourite brands made them feel – an exercise that helped shift our focus from tactics to genuine connection.
The group then split into three, each tackling a scenario to develop a marketing strategy for a coworking space concept aimed at a specific persona profile. Together, the groups came up with some fantastic content ideas to attract, convert, and retain a coworking community.
I also shared a case study of Projects in Brighton, after interviewing Brand Manager, Alana Harris, recently on their approach to content on channels like Instagram and LinkedIn.
The group was open, honest, and full of great energy. A huge shoutout to Ann-Marie, Zoe, and Jankarl, three of my regular readers who joined the session, and to everyone who took part.
I’ll be sharing those insights in a deeper post soon, but in the meantime, if you’d like to chat about anything content-related, just shoot me a message.
4. FLOC luncheon
I’ve heard so much about the Future Leaders of Coworking organisation recently, I just had to go along to their luncheon to learn more. FLOC was founded by Sam Shea, who has worked with some awesome coworking brands in the US, and who truly believes in empowering emerging leaders in the coworking industry. In fact, FLOC is the world’s first peer community for this.
Sam and I went for a coffee in Shoreditch on Tuesday, so it was fab to get to know more about her coworking background and FLOC.
At the luncheon, we played a fun game that got us speaking to new people. We had to find people in the room who had certain industry experience, from running a business to being a ‘therapist’ for a member, opening a new site recently, and sharing advice on leadership. There, I reconnected with FLOC’s UK chair James Panepinto, whom I’d met at GCUC Manchester last year.
5. Coworking tours
To top off a cracking conference, this morning, I went along to the coworking tours in Elephant & Castle and Borough. Each space was a beautiful example of exceptional workspace design, and they each had their own uniqueness:
Walworth Town Hall
A historic Grade II listed building that was constructed in 1865, Walworth Town Hall has served so many uses for the local community in Elephant & Castle, from a civic building, to where soldiers enlisted for WWI around 1914 (there are some photos of the event), to a library with a philanthropic function for local people, and now, of course, a workspace.
The building burned down in a huge fire in 2013, where it had stood in disrepair for many years before the developer, General People, took it over and turned it into a workspace. There are many beautiful design elements within the space; we were shown an impressive office with a mezzanine floor, the rooftop office, which was clad in timber (and had that fresh woody scent), and the cafe at the entrance with some comfy chairs and lovely artworks.
The Ministry
What a vibe! The Ministry has been open for 7 years following the sale of the Ministry of Sound record label to Sony. It had a brief stint as a private member’s club before being transformed into a workspace – packaging work, wellness, and events all in one.
Located in an old leather book binding factory in Borough, The Ministry has so many quirky aspects, from the exposed old brick walls to the melted disco ball above the doorway (the artist now works with the likes of Lady Gaga). What I love about this building is that there is a space for everyone – the beautiful outdoor terrace, the neon-lit gym and studio, and the buzzing hot desk floor.
The Ministry has full occupancy, which is no surprise – it was so busy this morning! Our lovely host Alex lives and breathes the Ministry brand.
Work.Life Borough
It’s always a joy to step into a Work.Life, and today’s tour visit was no exception. One of the coworking brand’s newer sites, Work.Life Borough is conveniently located close to Borough Market, and from its top floor, it boasts some awesome vistas of central London (including the London Eye).
The workspace was bustling with people, and like many Work.Life spaces, features a bright colour palette in their workspace design. We all loved the Winter Garden, with its impressive circular seating around a tree and atrium bringing in lots of daylight.
If you’d like to see some more visuals of the space, make sure to follow my Instagram, as I’ll be sharing more content in the coming days.
The future of coworking is: inspiring
There were so many standout moments over the past couple of days that, even beyond my shortlist, were an absolute joy to experience. The connections, conversations, and sense of community within the coworking industry are truly special — and I really felt that yesterday
If you went to GCUC yesterday, what were your favourite moments from the event? I’d love to know.
See you next week,
Lucy