CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia

What CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia does

CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2010 that provides management infrastructure to Philadelphia's arts, culture, and creative-economy sectors. The organization operates three interconnected service lines: (1) fiscal sponsorship, offered under CultureTrust Greater Philadelphia (a separate 501(c)(3) charitable trust, EIN: 46-3109411), which provides 90+ cultural projects with 501(c)(3) tax status, financial management, payroll and benefits administration, contract handling, insurance, and compliance oversight — charged as a 12% allocation fee plus $50/month under Model A (Comprehensive) or a 7% allocation fee plus $50/month under Model C (Contributed-Only); (2) a coworking membership program at Suite 300, 1315 Walnut Street, offering 5,000 square feet of workspace with high-speed WiFi, bookable meeting rooms, kitchenette, and shared amenities, priced from $50/month; and (3) event space rentals with nonprofit discounts. The underlying technology stack is built on commodity SaaS — Nexudus for membership management, Give Lively and FundRazr for donation processing, Eventbrite and Partiful for event registration, and Zoom for virtual programming.

The organization is led by Co-Executive Directors Melinda Steffy and Ariel Shelton (appointed January 2024) and supported by 1-10 employees. GTM motion is primarily community-led through Third Thursday events, cooking classes, mentorship mixers, and professional development workshops, supplemented by direct membership sales and semi-annual fiscal sponsorship intake windows (currently waitlisted). Customer segments are arts and culture organizations needing nonprofit infrastructure, individual creatives seeking affordable workspace, and emerging cultural projects requiring grant accessibility without forming independent entities. Revenue is generated through a mix of recurring subscriptions (membership fees), transaction-based allocation fees (fiscal sponsorship), event rentals, and tax-deductible donations. The organization operates exclusively within Greater Philadelphia and celebrated its 15-year anniversary in May 2025.

Name

CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia

Legal name

CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia

Website

https://cultureworksphila.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides fiscal sponsorship, affordable coworking, and event space to 90+ arts, culture, and creative-economy projects across Greater Philadelphia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Fiscal Sponsorship Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (81341), Civic and Social Organizations (813410), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Art, Arts Councils & Grantmaking Programs (BPAGAHAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Arts, Culture & Humanities Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAJ), Cultural Centers & Community Cultural Organizations (BPAGAHAD)

Keywords

• Fiscal sponsorship services
• Nonprofit management
• Coworking space
• Arts administration
• Community workspace

Headquarters

HQ city

Philadelphia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Coworking Memberships: Monthly membership fees for access to coworking space at Suite 300, including 5000 square feet in Center City Philadelphia with amenities such as high-speed WiFi, meeting rooms, kitchenette with complimentary tea and coffee, and basic printing. Membership plans start at $50/month for annual plans.
2. Fiscal Sponsorship Fees: Two fiscal sponsorship models: Model A (Comprehensive) charges 12% allocation fee on all revenues plus $50/month membership fee, with $10,000 minimum cash or pledges required. Model C (Contributed-Only) charges 7% allocation fee on contributed revenue only plus $50/month membership fee, with $1,000 recommended.
3. Event Space Rentals: Rental revenue from hosting meetings, events, and workshops in their coworking space. Competitive rates offered with discounts for nonprofit organizations.
4. Donations: Tax-deductible donations accepted as a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations support both CultureWorks directly and fiscally sponsored projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides management infrastructure for the cultural and creative sector. Its core offerings are fiscal sponsorship services (Model A Comprehensive and Model C Contributed-Only) that give cultural projects access to 501(c)(3) tax status and back-office support, and a 5,000-square-foot affordable coworking space at Suite 300, 1315 Walnut Street in Center City Philadelphia.

Product overview

CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia operates as a nonprofit providing management infrastructure for the cultural and creative sector through three interconnected service areas: fiscal sponsorship (offered as Model A Comprehensive and Model C Contributed-Only), a coworking membership program at Suite 300 (1315 Walnut Street), and event rentals. Fiscal sponsorship serves as the core offering, integrating projects under CultureTrust Greater Philadelphia's 501(c)(3) status to provide administrative back-office support. The coworking space complements the fiscal sponsorship program by offering affordable workspace with professional amenities and member discounts. Event rentals and professional development programming further serve the creative economy ecosystem. The organization supports over 90 fiscally sponsored projects across disciplines including theater, film, music, visual arts, design, and community initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fiscal Sponsorship - Model A (Comprehensive) Comprehensive fiscal sponsorship integrating cultural projects into CultureTrust Greater Philadelphia, providing full administrative services including financial management, bookkeeping, insurance, payroll/benefits, contracts, compliance, and 501(c)(3) tax status. Charges 12% allocation fee on all revenues plus a $50/month membership fee and requires $10,000 minimum in cash or pledges. Includes complimentary coworking access.
• Fiscal Sponsorship - Model C (Contributed-Only) Contributed-only fiscal sponsorship with an arms-length relationship to CultureTrust. Manages contributed revenue (donations and grants) on behalf of projects at a 7% allocation fee plus $50/month membership fee. Project handles its own earned revenue, expenses, insurance, and payroll via a separate LLC or business entity.
• Coworking Membership - Suite 300 Affordable coworking membership at 1315 Walnut Street, Suite 300 in Center City Philadelphia. Provides 5,000 square feet of workspace with high-speed WiFi, bookable conference and meeting rooms, kitchenette with complimentary tea and coffee, basic printing, shared office supplies, and access to Suite 1315 amenities (huddle room, wellness room, podcast studio, phone booths, game station, lounge). Memberships start at $50/month for annual plans.
• Event Rentals Event venue rental services for meetings, workshops, and special events in CultureWorks' Center City coworking space, with competitive rates and discounts for nonprofit organizations. Booking is handled via rental request forms on the website.
• Donation Processing Services Facilitation of tax-deductible donations to CultureWorks and its portfolio of 90+ fiscally sponsored projects, processed through the Give Lively and FundRazr platforms, with EIN documentation provided for tax deductibility.

Quantifiable outcome

• 90+ fiscally sponsored projects supported
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered supporting and core.

• Philadelphia Museum of ArtsupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 June 2026Collaborating partner for the Summer Intern Mixer event supporting pathways into the cultural sector. Partnership involves co-hosting networking opportunities for summer interns and professionals from arts and culture organizations.
• Penn MuseumsupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 June 2026Collaborating partner for the Summer Intern Mixer event supporting pathways into the cultural sector.
• Barnes FoundationsupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 June 2026Collaborating partner for the Summer Intern Mixer event supporting pathways into the cultural sector.
• Brandywine Museum of ArtStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 June 2026Collaborating partner for the Summer Intern Mixer event supporting pathways into the cultural sector.
• Hurford Center for the Arts and Humanities at Haverford CollegesupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 June 2026Collaborating partner for the Summer Intern Mixer event supporting pathways into the cultural sector.
• Chariot SolutionssupportingGTM or Marketing Partner · 7 May 2026Sponsor of Philly Tech Week event 'If I started a company today I would...' featuring founder and CTO panel discussion.
• Rails FeversupportingGTM or Marketing Partner · 7 May 2026Co-sponsor of Philly Tech Week event and host Wale Olaleye as Fractional CTO & Founder.
• Philadelphia Department of CommercecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Ongoing collaboration with Philadelphia Department of Commerce on Third Thursdays series and Creative Economy Resource Fair, designed to help attendees understand and access the ecosystem of support for creative and cultural ventures.
• The Philanthropy NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Co-presenter of Fiscal Sponsorship 101 six-part brown-bag Lunch & Learn virtual series designed to give funders practical understanding of fiscal sponsorship. Series made possible through support from The Philadelphia Cultural Fund.
• ClassLinksupportingTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2026Featured panelist for Philly EdTech Meetup presentation on interoperability, discussing how schools manage EdTech tools and leverage technology effectively.
• Give LivelysupportingTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2026Third-party platform used for processing online donations to CultureWorks and fiscally sponsored projects.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Fractured Atlas: Fractured Atlas is the largest U.S. fiscal sponsorship intermediary, offering 501(c)(3) status and back-office services to independent artists and small arts groups — directly comparable to CultureWorks' Model A and Model C sponsorship offerings, though at national scale rather than Philadelphia-centric.
• Creative Capital: Creative Capital is a national nonprofit that provides financial and advisory support to innovative artists and organizations — overlapping with CultureWorks' arts infrastructure mission though focused on grantmaking rather than coworking or fiscal sponsorship.
• Springboard for the Arts: Springboard is a national arts service organization that supports individual artists and small arts groups with fiscal sponsorship, classes, and community resources — overlapping directly with CultureWorks' mission and program mix.
• Foundation for Contemporary Arts: FCA provides fiscal sponsorship and emergency grants to performing and visual artists — a comparable nonprofit intermediary focused on arts/culture infrastructure, though more grant-driven than CultureWorks' hybrid coworking-plus-sponsorship model.
• United States Artists: USA is a national arts service organization providing direct fellowships and back-office support to U.S. artists — structurally aligned with CultureWorks' mission to deliver infrastructure and funding access to individual creators and small groups.
• New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA): NYFA runs one of the longest-standing fiscal sponsorship programs in the country, providing 501(c)(3) infrastructure and grantmaking support to NY-based artists and small cultural organizations — structurally analogous to CultureWorks' program though regional to New York.

Broad incumbents

• The Field Center for Entrepreneurship / Radial (WorkHands coworking peer set): The Field is a Philadelphia-based nonprofit providing workspace, accelerators, and small-business services — overlapping with CultureWorks' coworking and small-org infrastructure role within the same regional ecosystem, though oriented toward general small business rather than arts/culture.
• The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts: A national arts foundation that supports cultural institutions and artists through grants — comparable as a large cultural grantmaking entity in the same ecosystem, though more donor-funded and scale-oriented than CultureWorks' service-provider model.

Regional players

• Asian Arts Initiative: A Philadelphia-based nonprofit combining community arts programming, gallery space, and artist support services — directly comparable as a fellow cultural/arts support hub in the same metro, serving overlapping artist and creative-community segments.
• The Philadelphia Cultural Fund: The Philadelphia Cultural Fund is a local grantmaker that funds arts and culture projects in the city and is a known funding partner of CultureWorks' programs — comparable as a Philadelphia cultural ecosystem intermediary, though primarily a funder rather than a fiscal sponsor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cultureworks-greater-philadelphia
• Facebookfacebook.com/PHLCultureWorks

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

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 CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia