New co-working space IF Lab coming to Kensington

Cofounders Tayyib Smith and Meegan Denenberg gave the public a first look Saturday at their Kensington co-working space, the IF Lab, which is designed to provide resources for people of color pursuing entrepreneurship.

Why it matters: Black Philadelphians make up 43.6% of the city’s population but only represent a little over a quarter of business owners.

• When looking only at businesses that have employees, that figure plummets to about 6.3%.

Smith and Denenberg plan to open the co-working space in early 2022 and work with 10-20 businesses at any given time.

• The space, which has a library and small tech center, is the first of its kind, but there are plans for another in West Philadelphia.
• Co-working will be offered on a membership basis. Facilitators will share grant opportunities and provide technical assistance.

What they're saying: Smith told Taylor the project is about providing resources and information for people at any level, including "some people who are ready to start a small business and some people who need to go on a path to discover how to hone in on an idea."

• Denenberg told Taylor the space is intentionally designed to feel relaxed.
• She said they wanted to make a "mental jungle-gym" but also "a space for people to breathe." The purpose is for it to feel like it's for the community.