Coventry University, Coventry Start Up Café
Contact Details: |
Dr Gideon Maas, Co-Director Institute of Applied Entrepreneurship, Institute of Applied Enterprise |
Type of Project: |
The Café is the result of a refurbishment and re-purposing of a restaurant on campus. There were plans to remodel an existing restaurant on campus into a modern coffee bar and it was agreed to use this opportunity to convert it into a start-up café. |
Start/End Date: |
Opened September 2006 |
What makes the space successful?
The space has support from externals as well as excellent support from senior management within the University.
Keith Jones, of KAJ-ISIS Limited is very much involved. He is based at Coventry University Technology Park and had connections, partnerships with the University and others. This private sector partner has established a multi-layer website providing a virtual alongside the physical. The Start Up Café network is a virtual meeting space. The space is promoted and motivated by what the students see, not what they read.
What principles were behind the design?
The building itself was already in existence. The new space within the building has been designed to be open, flexible and welcoming. It's in the midst of the main campus so encourages footfall from throughout the campus. The general ethos of the Start-Up Café movement is that people should be able to Meet, Drink and Think. The atmosphere is very informal and yet the space can, hopefully, provide an environment in which enterprise activities can take place, some with a real purpose and focus and some as a consequence of the exchanging of ideas and mutual support of formal and informal peer networks. External experts can be introduced into the mix in order to provide perspectives on enterprise and practicalities of rolling out ideas into the marketplace.
What is innovative about the design? And use of the building?
The building itself was designed primarily as a catering outlet so, whilst an interesting circular shape with a high pointed roof it is not, it could be argued, in itself a particularly interesting building. It is the enterprise activity that happens inside it that is interesting and inspiring.
The change of purpose too, from a reasonably traditional restaurant to a technology-enabled flexible enterprise space is impressive.
What changes have you made as a result of receiving feedback?
As far as communication is concerned it has been found that database, Facebook and twitter announcements are much more successful contact media for students than email.
Anything else you wish to add
The Student Enterprise Building is being constructed next to the Start-Up Café and is due to open in 2011.
