TAKE YOUR SPACE
=SPACE’s mission is to serve entrepreneurs, founders and small businesses largely led by people of color, women and members of the LGBTQ+ community across industries and scale. Our start-ups tend to be tech and creative focused, however we welcome start-ups at all stages and all industries. From pre-seed start-ups to multi-billion corporations, our members represent the spectrum; what they all have in common is a commitment to working in space where they are not only welcomed, but believed in. We support our members’ growth and work to make sure they have all of the tools they need to succeed, in three ways:
Affordability:
We base our pricing on developing sustainable spaces, for budding solo entrepreneurs and startups — to HQs for social impact corporations with teams of 5 and more.
Versatile Space:
We offer various types of space for different entrepreneurs. From office suites and desk space for our members, to multimedia and podcast studios for our creatives.
Community Programming:
We curate 65% of the year with enriching events that cover business development, financial literacy, branding and marketing to art shows, mini concerts, market fairs, and more!
#TAKEYOURSPACE
THE BENEFITS OF BECOMING A SPACE(r)
We are NOT a COWORKING business. We are a SHARESPACE. The difference is clear: coworking is transactional, you receive a desk, you make a payment, your success is based on proximity and your work ethic. If the playing field were level this would be enough to jumpstart you to success. In an ideal world this would be the dream.
I think as we all work and put sweat, blood and tears into our dreams we can attest that the world is not fair. Inequality and Obstruction exist in the game of business, the game is rigged, so community is what offset the odds, communities of men, women and immigrating cultures banded together to offer support, comfort and guidance. That guidance, that community is how we define our sharespace, =SPACE is built by men and women and they, by people of color and immigrant voices. Once your business or startup enters our SPACE we sit in communion to learn about your vision, we build access and resources around you to even the odds. The benefits are in having an environment that says, yes in a world that sometimes seems to shout, no.
Don’t just take our word for it, the proof is in the sauce.
Programming to Create Impact
Last year we hosted over 25 events, with over 1.8K attendees, during a tough time for so many small businesses we were able to create free programming that empowered, educated and provided access to much needed support. Our proof is in our actions.
Amenities Offered at ES
Our space is 19,000 sq ft over three floors and we built every space to suit the needs of our members, many of the startups we have deal in media and data, and so our space has Newark Fiber, the fastest internet speeds on the east coast. With many of our entrepreneurs being content creators we created photography, video and podcast studios to meet their needs.
Access & Resources
Leading partners and community members help to create a more equitable landscape for our entrepreneurs and innovators to plant their seeds. In Newark, we have forged strong partnerships with anchor organizations, accelerators to incubators, and state institutions dedicated to creating impact. The team at ES is aware that we have to create a network of support to allow for our startups to gain the momentum they deserve.
We want to share in your dreams of success, #TAKEYOURSPACE with us.
THE 2021 End Of Year Report Is Here
We are so excited to share the second installment of our end of year report! We took 2021 by the reins and soared, it was such an amazing year! And we wanted to share our roses with you!!
Check it out below:
Juneteenth Celebration Guide
RECOGNITION • RESTORATION • JUSTICE
Juneteenth, celebrates African American freedom and achievement, while encouraging continuous self-development and respect for all cultures. As it takes on a more national, symbolic and even global perspective, the events of 1865 in Texas are not forgotten, for all of the roots tie back to this fertile soil from which a national day of pride is growing.
The future of this holiday looks bright as President Biden signed a bill officially recognizing it as a federal holiday. Respect and appreciation for all of our differences grow out of exposure and working together.
Click the links below and learn how you can get involved and support Juneteenth celebrations.
Creates new bonds of friendship and understanding amongst your community.
This indeed brightens our future – and that is the Spirit of Juneteenth.
JUNETEETH EVENTS
JUNETEETH RECIPES
SUPPORT AND DONATE
Happy Juneteenth!
2020 End Of Year Report
=SPACE Sharespace & Incubator presents our 2020 EOY Report. This report showcases the hard work our team put into making this a successful year. We care about the well-being of our community members; and about the future of entrepreneurship, generational wealth, and true excellence. We are the future and will continue to fight for our mission to provide equal space, opportunity, and resources.
CHECK OUT OUR 2020 END OF YEAR SIZZLE REEL TOO!
NJEDA Small Business Emergency Assistance Grant [Phase 2]
NJEDA will award a total of $45 million in federal CARES Act funding to small businesses. To support the Governor’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, $15 million will be reserved for businesses in Opportunity Zone-eligible census tracts, $15 million of Phase 2 funding will be set aside to support qualified businesses located in one of the 715 census tracts that were eligible to be selected as a New Jersey Opportunity Zone.
NJEDA has collaborated with a multitude of NJ organizations and businesses to provide info-webinars on eligibility, application processing, and will answer any other questions you may have. The upcoming webinars are below:
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3RD
LGBTQIA x EDA Webinar
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EST
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/
Carlos Medina Statewide Hispanic Chamber x EDA Webinar
5:00 – 6:00 PM EST
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82971141932?pwd=eFVTcEM5RnhWclQvV1c5Q2FuY1VZZz09
Prospect Park x EDA Webinar
6:00 – 7:00 PM EST
Join: https://zoom.us/j/83720103657
THURSDAY, JUNE 4TH
Port Authority x EDA Webinar
10:00 AM – 11:00 AM EST
Join: https://meet.google.com/sxi-aoar-xzv
NJ/NY MSDC x EDA Webinar
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM EST
Registration: TBA
Newark Alliance x EDA Webinar
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EST
Registration:
https://us02web.zoom.us/w/89930442868
FRIDAY, JUNE 5TH
Montclair Center BID x EDA Webinar
10:00 AM – 11:00 AM EST
Join: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83975730814
Meeting ID: 839 7573 0814
Senator Ruiz x EDA Webinar
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM EST
ZOOM Meeting ID: 968 6997 6077
Password: 4ayWgp
NJ State Chamber, Booker, NJBIA x EDA Webinar
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM EST
Latino Legislative x EDA Webinar
4:00 PM – 5:00 PM EST
Registration: TBA
A Message Of Solidarity & Call To Action From Our Founder
To Our Community:
The current uprisings and rebellions (I refuse to call them riots) reflect the long-overdue need to address the murders of our black brothers and sisters at the hands of law enforcement which have resulted in many lives lost over decades to violence and systemic oppression.
Our community has been traumatized day by day with the loss of so many to the brutality and corruption of those in law enforcement who fail to see us as people. The collective loss has been so uncomprehending as to not only insight an outpouring of pain, but to cause us to choke on it.
Our people are enraged and overwhelmed by it all. Some protests have shifted into violence, and “A riot is the language of the unheard.” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said in his speech “The Other America.” An observed moment in that speech is his question posed after it: “What is it that America has failed to hear?”
Day after day, body after body, video after horrible video, and ultimately name after name, it has become evident that law enforcement does not consider some of us to even be human. We are beyond tired of the names we have repeated over and over again, the names of our people who have closed their eyes while being brutalized and never reopened them. It has become our living legacy to carry on for them, to honor their memories, and to right the wrongs done to them. We have to speak and rally and take to the streets to cause change. Today and tomorrow we have to overturn this system.
This is all I can offer to you as you process the pain. I ask that you focus the intention to creating change. Build organizations, create safe spaces, become our politicians and advocates. Write and tell our stories. Unite and gather into a collective might that will take on the White House. We must carry on in the name of so many lost because we are all that can one day prevent the next atrocity from happening.
Today I walked with my people. I chanted, and I raged inside. That is what we have to do across the nation. It is a mourning of all we have endured and an outpouring of pain after there will come a great collective clarity.
We have to clearly remember how we have risen above time and time again. My fam, I want you to pour this into a movement. Look to Black Lives Matter. Join your local NAACP and Colors For Change. Let us back our leading voices like Tamika D. Mallory and Colin Kaepernick or donate to Reclaim the Block, Black Visions Collective or the Louisville Bail Fund. I want to walk away from today with the feeling that tomorrow we will turn to each other and help our brothers and sisters.
You are powerful. You can turn your rage and pain into change.
I am with you, the entire =SPACE family is with you. Take care and take action.
Citi Medina, Co-founder of =SPACE
TAKE ACTION WITH US AND ACTIVELY MAKE CHANGE IN NEWARK
HELP US ESTABLISH A CITIZENS POLICE REVIEW BOARD:
Step 1: Call 609-815-2955
Step 2: Press 1 for English/Press 2 for Spanish
Step 3: Press 3
Step 4: Let it ring
Step 5: If someone picks up or if you get a voicemail
“Hello my name is ________ & I demand that the Supreme Court uphold the appeals court decision for NEWARK to establish the police review board. Thank you”
If you wanna practice your Spanish ?
“Hola. Mi nombre es _______ y hoy exijo que la corte Suprema confirme la decisión de la Corte de Apelaciones de que NEWARK pueda establecer la Junta de Revisión Policíal. Gracias”
Developing Your Leadership Equation: Maximize Your Efficiency As A CEO
Do you have an idea of your organization’s vision; however, you are unclear about your next steps? Do you have the tools to take your project to the next level, but you keep hitting a roadblock? Like most people, you have belief systems that guide how you navigate the world. Those beliefs extend from your personal life, influence your workplace, and often govern how you approach your goals. In this workshop, Takeyah Young will guide you through five practical steps to help you map your values and outline how they can help you reach your goals.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Takeyah Young is an industrious thinker, engaging speaker, personal and professional leadership consultant, and STEM advocate who operates at the intersection of innovation, transformational leadership, and entrepreneurship as pathways for legacy building.
Takeyah is a consultant with EsteemLogic, an advisory and IT consulting firm that implements sustainable scalable technology, process reengineering, and management solutions. An engineer by training, educator in practice, and entrepreneur at heart, Takeyah Young provides solutions through personal transformation, professional development, and small business development. A speaker and leadership trainer, she works with universities, colleges, corporations and nonprofit organizations to support women through the stages of their STEM experiences and coaches groups to help them achieve personal and organizational change. Through her community wealth-building endeavor, Prosperity MIX™, Takeyah trains and develops leaders to provide financial education to their communities.
A graduate of Lincoln University (of PA) and University of Maryland, Takeyah was recognized as a changemaker by the White House Summit on the United States of Women. She was also included in Innov8tiv’s Top 100 Women Visionary Leaders to Watch; and selected by Lincoln University as one of their “Top 40 Under 40” Alumni.
VC CHATS: Inside The Minds of Investors – Virtual Pitching 101
Due to recent events, startups & investors have had to change the way they connected with one another. With that change came a large amount of misconceptions and fears presented within the startup ecosystem.
We have collaborated with Grit Daily to provide you with insight from two powerful venture capitalists about:
- How things have changed for investors in the era of COVID
- How founders should reconsider their business offerings
- How they should make their biz plans & forecasts more realistic
- The art of nailing a “pitch-by-zoom”
- and so many other hot button topics
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Loralyn Mears is a freelance columnist at Grit Daily covering coaching, tech startups, women-in-tech, events, and investors along with wine-food pairings. She spent over a decade playing with mosquito DNA, got her PhD, decided she would rather market science than be at the bench and has never looked back. Along the way, she’s wined and dined her way around the globe. She’s authored two books, including the 2018 Gold Medal Indie Book award-winning, One Sip At a Time: a Memoir. Check out her Women-in-Tech LIKE A BOSS podcast which features fascinating guests with snappy insights. Today she runs “Toasted Marshmellow” and helps companies with their go-to-market strategy whenever she’s not cooking for her teenage step kids who are *always* hungry.

Currently, Ms. Tedesco is managing member of Amala Ventures, a venture firm investing in early stage companies with diverse teams and innovative and disruptive technology in the USA and Brazil. Ms. Tedesco is a member of Golden Seeds and member and board member of Jumpstart NJ Angel Network.

Mario is an entrepreneur and active angel investor. In 2006, he founded the micro-VC firm Casabona Ventures, investing in over 25 early stage companies. Investments are currently focused on seed stage companies and the Internet of Things (IoT) .