‘Pay-per-minute sitting room’ Ziferblat has opened its largest branch yet in the tech-focused Tomorrow building at MediaCityUK in Salford.
Guests can use the unique co-working space, with unlimited tea, coffee, cakes, biscuits and snacks plus access to Wi-Fi, board games, magazines and newspapers, for just 8p per minute.
Spanning the ground and mezzanine floors of the new creative and tech space, it also has four meeting spaces and two ‘sheds’ which will be used for community events and be available for private hire.
The space can accommodate meetings for two to 100 people as well as larger conferences for up to 250 delegates.
Fitted out with input from businesses based in MediaCity, you can see a selection of images from inside the completed venue below.
Ziferblat has a series of events lined up for its new location, including secret gigs, yoga classes, film clubs, pop-up food events and themed talks.
The branch will also be serving its takeaway Ziferblend coffee on an honesty box basis, whereby guests in a hurry can pay what they believe the coffee is worth as they leave.
Simon Kaye, business development manager at Ziferblat, said: “We are incredibly excited to become part of the thriving creative community in MediaCityUK.
“The pay-as-you-stay concept is an alternative to a café or co-working space, offering more comfort and flexibility for guests than these conventional venues.
“Since opening in early 2015 in Manchester’s Northern Quarter, Ziferblat now welcomes over 10,000 guests per month.
“There will be another Ziferblat site announced in Manchester by the end of the year.”
Before launching its most recent sitting room, Ziferblat consulted with businesses, visitors, residents and individuals from around MediaCityUK, to find out what they’d like from the new venue.
The consultation yielded a wealth of unique, creative ideas, including a digital ‘window’ between Ziferblat’s MediaCityUK and Northern Quarter sitting rooms, whereby live stream screens will give guests a real-time view of the other location.
Kaye added: “We loved Alia Sheikh’s idea of the digital window so much, that we have granted her free Ziferblat access for a year.
“Alia already uses our Northern Quarter venue, but her job as a BBC researcher means she will frequent the MediaCityUK sitting room a lot, and we wanted to show our appreciation for her loyalty and creativity.”
Lynn Haime, asset manager for Tomorrow at MediaCityUK, said: “Ziferblat is a hotly anticipated addition to the creative community here at MediaCityUK, and we have been receiving continuous interest and support from tenants and visitors alike, since announcing them as Tomorrow’s anchor retail and co-working operator at the end of last year.
“The consultation project has been a fantastic way to engage with those who will use the space, and this collaborative approach is exactly the kind of thing we want to encourage and do more of, with Ziferblat customers and MediaCityUK occupiers.
“We look forward to seeing them develop their creative community at MediaCityUK.”