Where can you go to have a professional meeting in downtown Canton?
The answer to that question was hard to find until The Oak House opened to the public in August. Built in the historic, century-old building bearing the name Old Ford Building, The Oak House is a private co-working space and public coffeehouse.
What is a co-working space? If you are a freelancer or remote worker, you know the joy of working from home quickly fades as you stare at unwashed dishes and unfolded laundry while trying to finish up your project ahead of the looming deadline. A co-working space is a place you can go to be around other creative professionals who also are tired of working in their pajamas.
Every one of our members say they are more productive when they are here. We were very intentional about creating an environment where business professionals could come and get work done without all the distractions of working from home, and get the best cup of coffee in Canton.
The Global Coworking Unconference Conference (GCUC), considered by many to be the authority on the state of the co-working industry, states there will be close to 4,000 co-working spaces in the United States by the end of 2019. Co-working memberships worldwide number in the millions — 13 million to be exact — and have been climbing every year since 2010.
But, The Oak House isn’t all about the money. The Oak House is actually a ministry arm of Oak Leaf Church, which has called downtown Canton home for nearly a decade.
“We wanted to create a space that we could leverage between Sundays to fulfill our mission to prove God’s love,” said Will Goodwin, pastor of Oak Leaf Church. “We feel like this is a great opportunity for us to show that love to our community the other six days of the week.”
While you won’t find any overtly Christian messages when you tour the space, you definitely can feel something is different. The word art wall in the coffeehouse is 500 square feet of positive, feel-good messaging, and the auditorium houses the Blessings Wall, where everyone is encouraged to grab a marker and write down how they have been blessed in their lives.
The Oak House has been well received by the local community and already has been used by many organizations. With more than 3,000 square feet of meeting and event space, The Oak House has hosted events for many local groups, such as SERV International, the United Way of the Greater Atlanta Area, Goshen Valley, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs Metro Atlanta Region, and Your Brand Cafe, to name a few.
The Oak House is located at 151 E. Marietta St. and is open 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays-Fridays. If you are interested in booking an event, a working membership, or a coffee-only membership, call 678-653-6625 or email brian@theoakhouse.com.
– Brian Cain, director of The Oak House and Canton native.
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