Karen Burton, Making and Taking Space in Detroit
Tash Moore: Thank you so much for chatting with me? You run SpaceLab Detroit, the coworking space downtown geared toward architecture, community development, and like-minded firms. How did you discover coworking?
Karen Burton: Thanks for the opportunity, Tash. I opened my first design and drafting business years ago in Flint. I started in a 70 square foot office in an incubator just north of downtown called the Oak Business Center, which is still operating today. There were a variety of businesses there — professional services and retail with a conference room to share — but at the time everyone seemed pretty disconnected. I thought there could be a better way for businesses to share resources and collaborate.
Freelancing as an architectural designer, the traditional “third places” like coffee shops and libraries didn’t always fit my needs or my colleagues’. We’d need a place to print construction documents and large tables to lay them out for review when meeting with clients. There were many of us solopreneurs who wanted to collaborate on larger projects, and we needed somewhere to come together. The idea for our design and construction-focused coworking space began to develop some time ago, but the timing was perfect in 2015 after I left a job. The following year, my husband Bobby left his, and we decided to pursue the SpaceLab concept together.
TM: With associated partnerships with NOMA Detroit and AIA Detroit, your space really highlights inclusion in a field that doesn’t showcase as much diversity nationally. Besides our majority-black population, what else do you believe makes Detroit special?
KB: I’m proud of my connections with those organizations, as well as with NAWIC and NABWIC, the women in construction groups. We want to highlight that professionals of color and women working in these fields that are so-called non-traditional for us are just as educated and qualified and can lead and work alongside majority companies to get the projects done. SpaceLab is a diverse shared office space with members of all backgrounds and age groups. We’re thankful that people choose to grow their businesses with us.
Women are leading the way in entrepreneurship and startups, and black women are doing so in huge numbers. Working in architecture and construction, for the first nine or 10 years of my career I was the “only” — only African American and only woman practicing in the office — so I love seeing big numbers of female founders and business owners in Detroit. When we won Motor City Match, I believe the majority of business owners in our round were women, and my Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses cohort was about two-thirds woman-owned businesses. Women are blazing trails in this city.
And, Detroit’s ingenuity and resilience. There are small business owners who have operated here for multiple decades — they never left. They are the pillars who provide stability in our neighborhoods and the business community. We can learn so much from them about customer relationships and endurance.
TM: Where do you see Detroit’s entrepreneurial scene evolving over the next few years?
KB: I see us as a top-tier entrepreneurial hub for the country. There are so many resources available and a wealth of opportunities for innovation. Major companies are seeking out Detroit’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. But we’ve got to make sure we’re being inclusive of everyone and celebrating accomplishments of both the large businesses and the small ones.
TM: What drew you to entrepreneurship?
KB: I’m pretty sure it’s in my blood. My paternal grandparents were grocery store owners in Flint — my grandfather was also a residential builder. My other grandfather repaired TVs as a side gig. I have an uncle who started and sold a very successful tech company. I was surrounded by entrepreneurs and really didn’t realize. It was natural for them. My brother is an entrepreneur, too.
When I worked for a contractor in college, the business bug bit me. He had brochures from the SBA on starting a business. I read everything I could and developed a business plan for monthly home maintenance services for his company.
Getting laid off from my first architecture job — during a recession — kind of forced me to think of owning a business, and I took an entrepreneur class. Then, after a year-and-a-half of working as a contract employee for one of the auto companies, I decided that I could contract my services myself — consulting and freelancing. It was on then! I got my first consulting job with one of the largest architecture firms in the country. I loved taking the reigns and being in charge of my own destiny.
TM: What is your favorite memory from Detroit Startup Week?
KB: In 2018, I participated on a panel of female founders moderated by attorney Erin Bonahoom, herself a company founder. I love hearing people’s backstories — how they started their businesses, how they navigate the real struggles of ownership, and how they succeed, grow, and start more business adventures.
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Karen Burton is a marketer, designer, entrepreneur, and urban explorer, Karen has worked on large-scale architectural projects in Detroit and Las Vegas. Along her career journey, she found her passion for the business side of the building industry, and now works to help grow her client’s businesses. Her dream of a shared work environment for the design, construction and real estate industry has now come to life. Find more info about Karen and SpaceLab Detroit here.
In celebration of Detroit Startup Week, 5 day conference for Detroit’s entrepreneurs, we’re speaking with leading creators and founders in our community. Meet local leaders in person at the conference June 17th-22nd. RSVP here: http://detroitstartupweek.com/
