It’s hard work starting out in Bristol’s creative scene today, especially if you’re a young person with a new idea, business venture or project you want to get going! In recent years we’ve been sad to see long-running community hubs that offered affordable studio space for creatives in Bristol, such as Hamilton House and Wilder Street Studios in Stokes Croft or more experimental ventures like The Brunswick Club, be forced to close their doors. At the same time, the pandemic and the changes in the ways we work have led to an increased demand for individual or communal workspace away from home. With rent increasing across Bristol and commercial and industrial buildings increasingly earmarked for residential development, there remains a distinct lack of affordable and community-focused office, workshop and studio space for creatives. Many also aren’t in a position to pay a large up-front deposit or commit to long-term leases, and long waiting lists at the existing places combined with a cost of living crisis have prompted fears of a ‘cultural drain’.
Affordable and flexible spaces in which artists, up and coming businesses and creatives can work from (short-term or long-term) are vital to the lifeblood of any city. They’re important community hubs where people from different disciplines can pursue new business and creative projects, test out ideas, work on getting ‘side-hustles’ off the ground, host events, learn from each other, network, collaborate, promote ethical ventures and much more. Since the pandemic, these spaces can also provide an alternative to working from home or the office that is a much needed escape from the distractions of both for many. Subsequently however, in cities such as Bristol this has led to an increase in competition for flexible, affordable space in which to work between those living in the inner city.
We mentioned a few of the reasons for setting up studios spaces to rent in Bristol in our first blog post, but the long and short of it is we were inspired to be a small part of the solution to the problems mentioned above by breathing some new life into a quirky old building that was falling into a state of disrepair. Fast forward to the present day, and we hope we’re continuously improving on our contribution to the wider creative community of the city! If you’re looking for a studio space to rent in Bristol, short-term or long-term then check out what we’ve got on offer here.