Old Bond Store co-founder Liam Doe explains why clubworking could be the single best way to help you and your business grow
Occupying a Grade II listed former bonded warehouse in the centre of Southampton, Old Bond Store has opened its impressive large double wooden doors to an elite selection of the local business community.
Old Bond Store is located on the Back of the Walls in Southampton, originally built in 1802 as a bonded warehouse. Outwardly industrial, inwardly warm and welcoming, private yet spacious. Through thoughtful design it retains its historical soul whilst embracing the future, representing a much broader cultural change for the way in which businesses are working.
Liam Doe, co-founder and CEO of Old Bond Store, explains why now is the right time for clubworking to thrive in the UK, and why Southampton is the perfect place to start.
Old Bond Store embraces the concept of clubworking which has become popular in London, what inspired you to set something similar up in Southampton?
I've run various businesses. I found myself in coffee shops, because being in the office was disruptive. The staff were unable to work with autonomy because I was always there. I was flexible working but I didn't really know I was flexible working because it didn’t really exist outside of London and thought this isn’t quite right, the internet isn’t reliable and there are other customers in the café.
So, I looked for an alternative online, found WeWork, visited a couple of them in London just to get a feel for it, I thought it was great, but I started to realise as a business owner, WeWork and alternatives didn’t suit me. What I needed was a quiet space in a premium offering where I can get on with work and it's not so collaborative.
I went to the Devonshire Club in London on my travels, it was a member’s club but it had a jazzed up working space with hospitality. I knew that's it, that's the product but I didn't know where I was going to put it.
Why Southampton? How did the process of selecting the city work?
I come from Portsmouth so you start to draw a line of where it can be. People in the South gravitate towards Southampton for commerce.
I did a bit of research on Southampton and the aspirations of what they want to do and I have to be honest, it's great to watch what’s going on at the moment in the city.
I also see this as a fantastic product to the commuter. Because Southampton Parkway station in only an hour into London Waterloo, this is an alternative to getting on that train.
Old Bond Store is located in one of Southampton’s heritage buildings, what was it about the building that inspired you?
The idea came first and the building followed. I saw a few properties, and this was just it.
I see everything from a member’s perspective, with myself as member number one. I could see the end product, we’re in the centre of town, parking is convenient, it’s cool. It's different to the tiled ceilings of an office. Because what we are is a premium offsite work environment. So, we have to do all the things that an office can do but in a better setting.
Working with such a historical building must have had its challenges. How have you modified the building to work for the concept?
There were lots of challenges with the building because it's a warehouse. We spent over £1m in total. There were a lot of issues, some of them to do with making things structurally sound.
We had to keep what we thought was cool, and modify what we thought we had to get rid of. We’ve put in a huge amount of modern technology all hidden in some very old thick walls.
What was your design approach to the interior of the building?
We worked with an interior design company called Space and Solutions. We spent a long time on the design work. You’ll find modern artwork pieces on original and untouched interior walls. We’re maintaining what was already here but putting in some premium features. That's where Space and Solutions really shine, they really got that.
We’ve got a local art curator that rotates the art every two months. We're looking to hold it as a gallery space for the artists and showcase the local art. What I like is we're going to be an office space and also office environment, it can be a bit stale so rotating things like that keeps the space interesting.
How would you describe Old Bond Store look and feel?
Premium Raw.
I take a lot of inspiration from Ibiza. Ibiza has gone through a big transition, I went there when I was 17, I’m now 39, and Ibiza has kind of evolved alongside me. You can turn up at a beach club there and the service feels like it's relaxed, yet it’s high quality. I wanted to provide a work environment that did that. It’s light touch hospitality wrapped around a cool environment.
We’re working with a local company that does vinyl music and we’re curating our own playlist, so when you're sat there on a Tuesday morning the environment is slightly different to a Friday afternoon.
What distinguishes Old Bond Store from other flexible workspaces?
We are a passive brand, we don't do social media, there's a lot of noise there. The whole idea is we provide a platform to our members, we just want it to be a safe place. Almost a modern-day speakeasy.
Because we are hospitality led people to confuse us as an event space members’ club, but actually, we lead with a premium workspace.
This is the first space of its kind outside of London, actually, there isn't anything like this really in the whole country.
Does the idea go beyond the walls of Old Bond Store?
There is a big community aspect. There are little things we do which are important to me. Each member has their own professional profile within the community. We have an internal LinkedIn type facility where you can communicate with other members of the community? You can't sell, but you can buy. People will do business here but we’re removing the transactional aspect of doing business because my strongest business connections have formed on long term relationships.
Can you talk us through the different areas available within the building?
We’ve got three floors, the coffee shop on the top (which also seconds as a generous events space), people gravitate there to communicate, to network and to talk to the other members. There’s the lounge on the middle floor with a lot of cubby holes where you could have an informal meeting. Then we’ve got the study downstairs for work. There’s also the distillery which is equivalent to a boardroom with a downstairs area for hospitality. What I'm challenging is, you don't need a desk, what you need is a work environment to suit what you do and we want fluidity within the building.
Can you tell me more about how the membership process works?
We’re only having 100 members. And we expect them on average to use it 12 hours a week. If every member uses it 12 hours a week, we are 25% occupied. That's it. Members also get up to 10 visitor invites a week.
We’ve sent out invitations to pre-qualified business owners and business leaders within 8 miles of Old Bond Store.
What about hospitality, can members eat and drink in the building?
We’re working with private chefs; we’re sourcing local produce from local suppliers. The alcohol offering makes sense and we may open a little later on a Friday. We work with a wine curator so our wine rotates every month.
Soho House is known for attracting members from the creative industries. Who are the members of Old Bond Store?
Our members are business owners, shareholders, partners, managing partners and CEOs of local business. With a cross-section of sectors and companies. Amazing things happen when you get people like that in a room, and it's just great watching it happen because that's what we are, we’re a platform.
Are you working with other partners in Southampton?
Yes, we’ve already got a partnership with The Pig. Who offer Bond Store members a corporate room rate and the best room that's available at the time.
We’re also partnering with cocktail bar 1932. We’re not drinking den, this is the workspace. So we need to be able to make recommendations to members who want to relax after they’ve been here.
Where do you see the project going in the future?
I think that if it works here, it can work in other destinations, particularly those where people work flexibly like Bristol or Reading. But each space would be independent to that area, it will be named and branded to that destination, but it will work under the same guise.
Old Bond Store is open to members from 9-6 Monday to Friday
Membership is £300 per month