The Qube the capital’s coworking studio complex for creatives has announced a £1.9m funding round led by the Angel CoFund, UK music industry veterans AEI Group, and a strategic cohort of angel investors including co-founder of Mixcloud, Nikhil Shah, and ex-MD and co-founder of Investec, Bernard Kantor. The funding will be used to develop their 16,000 square foot flagship site ahead of its launch.
With less than 20 dedicated music and arts flexible working spaces out of around 14,000 coworking offerings globally – co-founders Amin Hamzianpour and Nicholas Sonuga launched The Qube in order to provide a vibrant community and unique workspace for the underserved creative sector.
Home to over 30 soundproof studios under one roof, the West London premises will offer a collection of purpose-built music, podcast, photography and video edit facilities, all catering to the needs of today’s artists and creatives. The range of packages available gives individuals a choice of flexible and affordable coworking solutions, providing members with the space, resources and network needed to write, produce and record to a professional level.
The Qube is now accepting new members, and the first site will be officially launching in the autumn of 2019.
Amin Hamzianpour, co-founder of The Qube, said: “Working as a music producer for the past five years, I have struggled tirelessly to find flexible and affordable studio space with a real sense of community. Most creators are facing this same battle; artists, podcasters, songwriters, photographers, youtubers, video editors, directors working from home or in dingy basement studios feeling isolated, with no real sense of belonging. We’ve set out to bridge that gap with Qube; a home for a new generation of creators to connect, collaborate and most importantly feel inspired to create their best work.”
Tim Mills, founder partner at the Angel CoFund, said: “We have seen a massive expansion in the coworking market over the past few years, with a wide range of operators bringing much needed choice to serve all types of office workers, but Qube has identified that there is a lack of similar options available for the UK’s flourishing arts and creative industry. Amin and Nicholas have a clear vision, borne from their own extensive experience, to give access to tier 1 facilities for creatives across the sector, and bring people together in a vibrant environment where ideas get the best chance to thrive. The UK has an incredible creative community, and the Qube will give it space fit for the 21st century.”
Nikhil Shah, co-founder of Mixcloud, said “I’m always drawn to founders solving their own pain points, and so I immediately connected with Amin and Nicholas’ personal stories of frustration finding the right space and community in London as professional musicians. Which is madness because London is the music capital of the world! Coworking is exploding but we’re in a sea of sameness, and no-one is truly serving creatives and artists. Qube have an enormous opportunity to fix this and build a global brand and community by super serving artists. I’m excited to be a part of it.”
Bernard Kantor, co-founder of Investec, said: “Being a part of this journey with Amin and Nicholas has been a refreshing experience. The founders ooze excitement and passion, and their creativity and vision for taking on the coworking industry is truly unique. Their positioning is well thought out, their product is ahead of the market and the model is scalable not only in the UK but globally.”
