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The Skillery, a co-working space in Germantown that opened in 2014, is planning to close at the end of the year. Skillery founder Matt Dudley announced the decision yesterday in the company blog, stressing that the Skillery isn't losing money. "We've been profitable for most of 2016," he wrote. "We finally feel like we understand how to keep expenses in check, and that's helped us remain in the black."
However, Matt explained, the business' lease at 1323 Sixth Ave N was up for renewal, and rent would go up 30%. "Initially, we expected to re-sign the lease. But with that renewal in front of us, we paused."
"The growth of our co-working membership base has slowed," Matt added. "The quality side of that metric is, bias accepted, off the charts, and our current members are paying more per head than ever before. But we don't feel the momentum from new/prospective members that we’ve felt in the past.
"What we offer—flexible, open space, with a lo-res feel and minimal private space—flies in the face of what most co-working spaces are doing these days. The momentum in the co-working world has shifted toward offering small private offices.”
Innovation studio stoke.d will take Skillery's space after Jan. 1. The Skillery will live on, in a different form, as Matt pursues expanding his Introduction to Entrepreneurship workshop.
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