Mahitahi Tasman has opened the doors to its co-working space in Māpua, with 17 coworkers already using desks for work and business.
Among them is Dan Raats and two employees, who operate a digital marketing business, Digitella, from a cluster of desks in the new hub. He describes himself as a “lifestyle refugee” from Wellington who “escaped to Nelson” and has been using the Mahitahi Colab space in Nelson. He waited for his two employees to decide where to live before selecting a base - one ended up living in Atawhai, the other in Motueka. His solution is now renting hot desks for a few days a week between both Nelson and Māpua.
Beyond accommodating his team’s locations, Dan says the co-working space and innovation hub provide valuable networking opportunities.
Both Mahitahi spaces operate as part of a not-for-profit partnership between Nelson Tasman Chamber of Commerce, Nelson Regional Development Agency and Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technololgy (NMIT). Dan says the connection to those groups, and the events they organise, creates further connections.
Mahitahi chairman Russell Manning says the new Māpua space will provide up to 600 desk days a month, that can mean anything from contracting a desk for an hour up to a 40-hour week. People using hot desks are often wanting to escape a busy household where “their mini colleagues are dominating”, socialise more than they can working from home, or find it more affordable than hiring a private office.
According to the 2023 census, Tasman has the highest percentage of people working from home than anywhere in the country, with numbers rising from 14.1 per cent 2013 to 20.8 per cent in 2023.
“We have people who have been working from home for a long time and missing out on the social aspect,” he says. “From a holistic point of view, this is around connections – being able to interact with other people around you and feed off them.”
The co-working space also has meeting rooms for clients, and “pods” where co-workers can make phone calls privately.
