What started as a problem turned into a business venture for CapeSpace President Robbin Orbison and PopDesk CEO and founder Mathieu Schepard.
The pair, who had previously worked at Silverstein Properties in New York City, partnered together to find an easy-to-use solution for professionals who need to find temporary workspace by the day. This month, their efforts will lead to the rollout of a new app, PopDesk, that will allow users to book co-working space with three simple taps on their mobile phones.
“I’m really excited about launching this,” Orbison said. “There was a need when we started developing this and there’s even a bigger need now because there are so many remote workers out there due to the pandemic.”
With the support of Archer Software, Orbison and Schepard developed PopDesk, which is modeled after HotelTonight. It’s a curated list of coworking centers, all vetted by Schepard, Orbison and the PopDesk team. By focusing on quality, the goal is to ensure that users will book office space repeatedly, confident that each facility listed on the app will meet their remote working needs.
Unlike current offerings, PopDesk provides ease of use for co-working centers, remote workers, and HR departments who need professional offices for their staff. As more people than ever are working remotely, Schepard and Orbison realized how vital it was to have quick, simple access to professional coworking facilities.
“There are a lot of websites that purport to be places where you can easily find workspace but they don’t work very well, if at all,” Schepard said. “Whereas there’s very robust sites for booking hotel rooms on specific dates, there’s nothing like that for coworking so we decided to create our very own app to fill that void.”
The app is being launched this month and will initially feature 10 locations throughout New York City. It will eventually roll out to other cities throughout the country, including Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Miami, Los Angeles, and Austin as well as Toronto, Canada, and London, England.
“Working from home is great, but with all the distractions, there needs to be other solutions than going into your corporate headquarters,” Schepard said. “Co-working has become one of those solutions. We’ve gone from a niche industry to more mainstream and a viable substitute when there are too many distractions that may exist if you live and are trying to work in a tiny apartment in the city.”
