If the pandemic taught us anything, it’s that the traditional workspace is a thing of the past. Many of us relished the opportunity to avoid peak-hour commutes, office wear and rigid hours and enjoy more time spent with our pets and remote meetings. Yet, working from home also has its downsides – many of us experienced burnout and a lack of separation from home and work life and social interaction. Now with the gift of 2020 hindsight and many companies returning to the office or hybrid work, the concept of a physical workspace and how it affects our day to day energy, creativity and overall quality of life is clearer than ever before.

BLINK Community Founder and CEO Alan Cheung started BLINK Community Roppongi in 2018 with a definitive vision, “I wanted to create a space where people could go to  work, collaborate, learn and socialize. Opportunities come about when you connect people together.” BLINK now has two spaces in Tokyo – Roppongi and Kioicho with the pet-friendly Roppongi space, spread across four levels with a cafe and roof terrace, home to an international community of  innovative startups, entrepreneurs and freelancers as well as regular events. The Kioicho branch is a coworking space conveniently attached to the Family Mart at Nagatacho Station and only a couple of minutes walk from Akasaka-Mitsuke station, featuring private offices, conference rooms and a lounge area. But the physical spaces aren’t at the forefront of the BLINK concept. 

What separates BLINK from the typical coworking space is an emphasis not just on the spaces themselves, but the people who utilize them, “We are not about a workspace, we’re about community, it’s about building the ecosystem, then the people who support each other.” BLINK enjoys a diverse membership of 50/50 Japanese and foreign members as well as 60/40 male and female members from a variety of industries, regularly coming together to collaborate and lend their skills to each other’s projects. Collaboration is a big aspect of the BLINK ethos, not just between its members but also local residents and businesses with the Roppongi branch’s cafe enjoying regular visits from local students for language learning as well as rescue dogs from local pet adoption business, Buddies, who visit the space to gain socialization skills. Foodtruck pop ups and regular industry workshops, networking, music and comedy events are just some of the other ways that BLINK makes use of their spaces to create opportunities for its diverse community.

Opportunity is one of the driving themes behind the BLINK concept, with Cheung seeing BLINK as a means to help bridge the gap between Japan-based small businesses and overseas markets, “Japan has a lot of know-how, culture and history and I think there’s a lot of opportunities to bridge that to outside the world, there’s also a lot of opportunity to bridge outside ideas and implement them in Japan.” With Japan having recently reopened to the outside world, BLINK’s community is taking advantage of the diverse range of opportunities currently available in Tokyo and working together to further develop BLINK’s unique ecosystem. 

blinkcommunity.com

BLINK Roppongi
3 Chome-1-6 Motoazabu, Minato City, Tokyo 106-0046
03-6455-5028

BLINK Kioicho Tokyo Garden Terrace Kioicho
2F 1-2 Kioicho, Chiyoda-ku,  Tokyo 102-0094
080-4956-5883