Culture

Pavilion Cowork offers free office time for startups and entrepreneurs ahead of new Vancouver location

Pavilion Cowork is set to open its new Vancouver location downtown in 2025, along with its new Calgary space to be the first outside of B.C.

By Xiao Qing Wan /

Working in a traditional office filled with grey cubicles and a not-so-inviting break room can sometimes feel a little stuffy. And for small businesses that are just getting started, leasing an office space can be expensive. Enter: Pavilion Cowork, a Vancouver-based coworking space that features sleek and modern offices, perfect for those wanting a more conducive working environment.

Pavilion Cowork first opened with two locations in Mount Pleasant in 2020, with the goal of offering businesses a flexible office space. Pavilion is a subsidiary of Alabaster Homes, a real estate development company. It all started when the team couldn’t find the optimal coworking space for them.

“[The Alabaster Homes team] was not able to find… a professional environment that they felt comfortable bringing clients, investors and potential talent into,” explains Stirling Bell, Pavilion’s Director of Growth. “So, they went and created their own, and we found that it resonates with many other business professionals.”

Following the success of the Mount Pleasant locations, Pavilion is expanding with two new spaces this year: one location in Downtown Vancouver and another in Calgary.

Pavilion will open its new location in Downtown Vancouver at 900–564 Beatty Street this summer. The 5,500 square foot space will feature 18 private offices, 16 dedicated desks and two meeting rooms. It will also be fitted with a cozy lounge and kitchen area, as well as large floor-to-ceiling windows for ample natural light.

two opposite-facing desks with black chairs at Pavilion Cowork
Credit: Pavilion Cowork

“We’re a very design-driven business,” says Bell. “We think that the environment you work in helps to mould the work that you do… so we always strive to create spaces that inspire the people that work in them.”

The company’s Calgary location will be its first-ever office space outside of B.C.. Pavilion chose the city because Alberta has one of the highest rates of entrepreneurship in Canada, according to Bell. The fast-growing city sees many young entrepreneurs starting up businesses but currently lacks the shared office and coworking space to accommodate this increase. Opening this fall at 800–550 6th Avenue South West, the Calgary location will boast a whopping 14,906 square foot space that houses 47 private offices and four meeting rooms.

Alongside its exciting new openings, Pavilion has also relaunched its Residency Program, an initiative that offers free office space to startup and scale-up businesses. The program will provide eight free offices—three in Vancouver’s Downtown and five in Calgary—for a four-month period. They will also offer marketing support like team photos and professional videos. Alumni of Pavilion’s Residency Program include travel brand Monos and wellness label Blume.

“We’re really excited to have the ability to offer, again, some free space to help those young entrepreneurial businesses in the Vancouver and Calgary market,” says Bell. “Especially in a time when there is a lot of uncertainty… I think it is more important now than ever to support Canadian businesses.”

Applications for the Vancouver Residency Program are open from now until May 15, and until July 31 for Calgary. Find out more about Pavilion at pavilioncowork.com.