Tracey Strassner stands in front of the collaboration board (also called the vibe board) at Success Hub, located at 207-A Spring St. in Shelbyville next to the Police Department. (Photos by Zoe Watkins)
By ZOË WATKINS
zwatkins@bedfordcountypost.com
With hybrid and remote work the norm for many businesses, social necessities like networking and co-worker collaboration can be challenging to come by.
But spaces like Shelbyville’s Success Hub are solutions to those remote collaboration needs.
Tracey Strassner has been working on Success Hub for over a year now, located at 207-A Spring St. And she says it is starting to get traction in the community.
With groups like Building Bedford Businesses who meet at the space on Tuesdays, her vision of “magic happens when people connect” is starting to take off.
“It was about getting people who went remote to reconnect digitally but also come in and give them a place to connect with people one-on-one,” said Strassner.
The area doesn’t have many places like it. Strassner said she was inspired by the co-working space Makeshift in downtown Pulaski.
Success Hub is a flexible, connected creative space not only for remote workers, but also entrepreneurs, small businesses, sales professionals, and anyone looking for a collaborative space.
Since opening, Strassner also sees the opportunity for Success Hub to support the business culture here in Shelbyville.
“Just in my experience in Bedford County, in the last two years, growth in small and large business is amazing. I am also using the space to promote small and new businesses,” said Strassner. “I think there’s a lot of growth happening that our local businesses could be more prepared for. So how do I bring in lunch-and-learns or content that will help them grow?”
One way Success Hub can help this growth is through upcoming events like “Headshot Day,” where a photographer will come in mid-March to take professional photos for your business card, website, or LinkedIn profile. On March 19, Boro Business Lab is hosting a Google Business Profile Workshop, to teach you how to optimize your Google profile to drive new business.
Strassner added, “I am also hoping to get United Communications to host a workshop that would cover how to protect and secure your business’s Wi-Fi.
“With my 30+ years background in planning and building tech solutions, I set the space up to be entirely digital,” she said, who explained people can request an access passcode that serves as a digital key, which can be approved to unlock the space whenever users need access.
“So when you just need to change your scene to spark some creativity or you are experiencing a tech challenge, you can reserve a space through our website, head that way, and you should have a digital by the time you can drive there,” Strassner said.
Even though Success Hub’s hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., this digital set-up enables users to stay outside of those hours and weekends—often when coffee shops, restaurants, or other common meeting places are closed.
A Punch Pass can be used to buy a block of access days and to use them as needed.
For example, the conference room can be rented for $50 for three hours, or if you just need to place to creatively work you can “drop-in” for a half day for only $15 and get access to fast internet, the conference room, and unlimited coffee and tea.
The space offers several benefits:
- A conference room which holds up to 10 people for meetings and training classes
- A flexible workspace which includes standing desks, dedicated desks, lounge and work areas
- A vibe board, which is a digital collaboration board for brainstorming, video meetings, and podcasts
The space is also user-friendly. Once logged on to the high-speed Wi-Fi, users have access to printers and the collaboration board.
If you are brand-new and coming in for a meeting, once connected to the Wi-Fi, you can cast your screen to the vibe board or monitor in the conference room by scanning the QR code and signing in. Strassner is focused on making the space easy to connect and use.
“I want the technology to be an enabler not a frustration,” she said.
Becoming a member of Success Hub community also gives you networking abilities with other members, generating that “magic” when people connect.
“So far we have also had First Time Homebuyers classes (Magnolia Ridge Realty) and a class to help Improve your Credit Score.”
Strassner said she currently has two business memberships that have dedicated desk space and anticipates two more joining soon.
“I have one from Lewisburg who started using it two months ago,” said Strassner. “She was going from Lewisburg to Murfreesboro. She’s a tax accountant, and so she found this as a middle ground and she can meet with her clients here. And Shelbyville is now a new client opportunity base for her.”
Call 931-488-5886 for more information or go to successhub-shelbyville.com to schedule a tour or see what’s coming up on their event calendar.
