Office Space in Shimogyo ward, 160 Nakanocho

The desks are the easy part. What is harder to find is somewhere with people in it who are actually around. Inside, the mix is deliberate. Some members are here for a month between cities. Others are locals who took the membership that comes without a desk, and who turn up to sit in the lounge and talk. Staff are in the building on weekdays from 9:00 to 19:00, in the lounge rather than at a reception counter. Gatherings run through the year, mostly out in the city rather than in a meeting room. Some are outdoor and seasonal, like hikes into the hills around Kyoto. Others are made for reflection, like the tea gathering we hold about once a month. Some are just dinner at the izakaya down the street. Nobody is asked to join anything. For the work, the third floor stays quiet: desks with monitors, a 10 Gbps fiber line and soundproof phone booths. The second floor is the lounge, with a shared kitchen and a tatami room for small meetings or a nap. The fourth floor is three coliving rooms rented by the month.