1921 Coworking

What 1921 Coworking does

1921 Coworking and Incubator, NFP is a not-for-profit tech and manufacturing incubator headquartered on Chicago's far Southside at 11001-05 South Michigan Avenue, operating a 12,000+ sq.ft. facility with private offices, soundproof booths, an outdoor coworking patio, TV studio, and 3-D printing equipment. Founded in 2020 by CEO James "jp" Parker, the organization describes itself as the first and only tech incubator on Chicago's far Southside and serves minority and women-owned startups, local entrepreneurs, university students, and community residents seeking IT certifications and workforce training.

Its product surface spans physical coworking memberships (from $480 per month), virtual mail subscriptions ($40 per month), hourly meeting room rentals ($30 per hour), branded merchandise ($10.50-$55 per item), and an equity stakeholder investment platform that allows individuals to acquire equity shares in 1921-launched startups starting at $500. Programmatic offerings include the Photon Initiative (12-week startup training), 1921 University (two-week summer program for university partner students), the Ken Smikle Learning Space (free IT certifications and youth tech camps), the Young Tech Initiative, IT Network Certification Training, a Franchise Incubator, and Housing Initiatives. The stated targets are 350+ minority and women-owned startups launched and 5,000+ jobs created at $55,000+ starting salaries.

The business model is a hybrid NFP structure combining recurring subscription revenue (coworking and virtual mail), transactional revenue (meeting rooms and merchandise), donations/grants, and an equity-based stakeholder investment stream. Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer, primarily through the single Chicago facility, a Wix-hosted e-commerce storefront, self-serve virtual mail sign-up, and direct outreach for stakeholder investments. Partnerships with The Ideal Candidate and university partners with high minority enrollments support program delivery, while earned media coverage on WGN's DayTime Chicago and NPR's WBEZ drives top-of-funnel awareness.

Name

1921 Coworking

Legal name

1921 Coworking and Incubator, NFP (Not-For-Profit)

Website

https://1921coworking.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

1921 Coworking and Incubator, NFP operates a 12,000+ sq.ft. tech and manufacturing coworking and incubator facility on Chicago's far Southside, offering memberships, virtual mail, meeting rooms, merchandise, and equity stakeholder investments to minority and women-owned startups, students, and local entrepreneurs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Coworking Spaces & Business Incubators

akta.pro primary industry

Coworking Cafes / Work Cafes (THAFADAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

3D Printing, CAD & Digital Fabrication Programs (EDAMADAH)

Keywords

• Coworking space
• Startup incubator
• Virtual mail service
• Tech certification training
• Meeting room rental

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Coworking Memberships: Monthly recurring memberships for coworking space access including private offices, hot desks, and 24-hour access to facilities. Starting at $480 per month.
2. Virtual Mail Service: Monthly subscription for professional business address, mail handling, package delivery notifications, and meeting room access. Priced at $40 per month.
3. Meeting Room Rentals: Hourly rental of meeting rooms for conferences, presentations, and training. Meeting rooms include AV equipment and seating for 8 people at $30 per hour.
4. Merchandise Sales: Sale of branded merchandise including hoodies, t-shirts, mugs, tote bags, and notepads. Products priced $10.50-$55 with flat-rate shipping. Proceeds support community tech training programs.
5. Equity Stakeholder Investments: Not-for-profit incubator offering equity shares in startups launched from 1921 for investments starting at $500. Investors receive 1% equity share in startups launched from the program.
6. Donations and Grants: Tax-deductible donations to support 1921 Incubator NFP's mission of training, funding, and launching minority and women-owned tech startups in low-income communities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

1921 Coworking operates a 12,000+ sq. ft. tech and manufacturing coworking facility on Chicago's Southside, providing private offices, hot desks, soundproof booths, TV studio, and 3D printing equipment. The company also offers monthly Virtual Mail Service subscriptions, hourly meeting room rentals, startup incubation programs (Photon Initiative, 1921 University), free IT certification training, branded merchandise sales, and an equity stakeholder investment platform that allows community members to invest in startups starting at $500.

Product overview

1921 Coworking and Incubator operates as a multi-faceted tech and manufacturing hub on Chicago's Southside, combining physical coworking facilities with educational programs, startup incubation services, and a merchandise store. The core offering is the 12,000+ sq. ft. coworking space featuring private offices, soundproof booths, TV studio, and 3D printing. This is complemented by Virtual Mail Service for professional business addresses and the Meeting Rooms for hourly rentals. The startup ecosystem is anchored by the Photon Initiative for founder training and the 1921 University summer program for university students. The Ken Smikle Learning Space provides youth programs including podcast classes, gaming dev camps, and sports broadcasting. Additional initiatives include the Young Tech Initiative, IT Certification Training, Franchise Incubator, and Housing Initiatives. The 1921 Stakeholder Investment Platform enables community investment in startups. The 1921 Merch Store sells apparel including hoodies, t-shirts, mugs, and tote bags to fund community programs. Pricing starts at $40/month for Virtual Mail Service and $30/hour for meeting rooms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• 1921 University: A fun and intensive two week Summer program for University Partner students studying business and entrepreneurship. Students learn from speakers, business founders, mentors, and investors to take an idea from paper to launch.
• Photon Initiative
• Ken Smikle Learning Space

Products and services

• Coworking Space Monthly coworking memberships for private offices and hot desks in a 12,000+ sq.ft. tech and manufacturing hub, including 24-hour access, free WiFi, and capacity for up to 15 people. Targeted at entrepreneurs, startups, and small business owners.
• Virtual Mail Service Monthly subscription service providing a professional Chicago business address, suite number, mail/package delivery notifications, mail forwarding, and free meeting room access. Targeted at businesses wanting a Chicago presence without physical occupancy.
• Meeting Rooms Hourly rental of meeting spaces equipped with 50" Smart TV with HDMI, Wifi Speaker, small fridge, water bottles, and presentation stand, seating up to 8 people. Targeted at businesses, entrepreneurs, and teams needing professional meeting space.
• 1921 Stakeholder Investment Platform Equity investment platform allowing individuals to become equity stakeholders in startups launched from 1921 Incubator NFP, starting at $500 for a 1% equity share. Targeted at community members and investors seeking pre-launch startup exposure.
• Photon Initiative 12-week intensive startup training program with workshops, mentors, subject matter experts, and investor pitching opportunities, structured in phases from idea evaluation to launch readiness. Targeted at startup founders from idea to launch stage.
• 1921 University Two-week intensive summer program for university students studying business and entrepreneurship, partnering students with mentors, founders, and investors to take ideas from paper to launch. Available in-person and virtually.
• Ken Smikle Learning Space Training facility offering youth podcast classes, empowerment and mental health classes, tech support, help desk, cyber security, and 3D printing certifications, plus youth sports broadcasting and gaming development camps. Targeted at community residents and youth.
• IT Network Certification Training Program Tech certification program providing Google IT, Network IT, and Cyber Security certifications at no cost for qualified community residents with a diploma or GED. Targeted at residents of low-income communities seeking high-paying tech jobs.
• 1921 Merch Store Online e-commerce store selling branded apparel and accessories including hoodies, t-shirts, mugs, tote bags, and notepads priced $10.50 to $55, with flat-rate shipping. Proceeds support community tech training programs. Targeted at supporters and community members.

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• The Ideal CandidatecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with The Ideal Candidate (www.theidealcandidate.org) to provide young people with essential life and professional skills including non-verbal skills, dress etiquette, social media etiquette, and workforce readiness. Works with 1921 Young Tech Initiative participants.
• University Partners (Colleges with High Minority Enrollments)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with universities having high minority enrollments in business/entrepreneurship programs for the 1921 University summer program. Students from partner universities participate in person or virtually. No cost to become a university partner. Contact: [email protected]

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• WeWork: Global coworking and flexible-office operator offering memberships, private offices, and meeting rooms. Comparable as a coworking provider, though WeWork operates broadly at scale rather than in 1921's community-incubator niche.
• Industrious: Premium flexible-workspace provider offering coworking, private offices, and meeting rooms across major U.S. cities. Comparable service mix (memberships, meeting rooms) but a much larger, enterprise-focused operator without 1921's incubator or community mission.
• Spaces (IWG): International coworking and creative workspace brand under IWG. Directly comparable coworking membership and meeting room product, but operates in higher-income urban cores at scale.
• Techstars: Global accelerator and incubator running mentorship-driven programs for startups. Comparable as an incubator model but Techstars is a global, equity-driven accelerator without physical coworking or community-development overlay.

Direct peers

• Impact Hub: Global network of impact-focused coworking and incubation spaces for entrepreneurs tackling social and environmental challenges. Most direct peer to 1921's mission-driven coworking-plus-incubator model, serving similar underserved founder segments.
• Workbox:

Regional players

• 1871: Chicago-based tech hub and incubator providing coworking, mentorship, and programming to startups. Geographic peer offering comparable incubator services, though located in downtown Chicago rather than the Southside community 1921 serves.
• mHUB: Chicago-based manufacturing and physical-product innovation hub offering coworking, prototyping equipment, and accelerator programs. Comparable incubator-plus-workspace concept with manufacturing focus, mirroring 1921's tech and manufacturing positioning.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/1921coworking
• Facebookfacebook.com/1921CoWorking
• Instagraminstagram.com/1921coworking
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/1921-coworking

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about 1921 Coworking