Business hub and cycling cafe, The Hub and Spoke, opens in Oakham
A businessman who knows first-hand the monotony of working from home has launched a town centre hub.
Since the pandemic, when working from home became the normality for many, lots of workers have not returned to the office or have turned ‘hybrid’, a combination of both.
Although there are many benefits, being stuck within the walls of your own home has created challenges, according to Charlie Reading who opened the doors to The Hub and Spoke in Melton Road, Oakham on Tuesday (April 2).
Charlie, who lives in Exton, said: “What I found when working from home is that the initial novelty wore off and it became really boring.
“The dog would be staring or you become aware of the pile of dirty washing sitting there.
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“Equally I didn’t want to be commuting to an office.”
True to its name, he describes The Hub and Spoke as ‘a business-focussed cafe by week and a cycling cafe by weekend’.
As well as tables in the cafe, the hub offers hot desking, meeting rooms and private offices which can be rented out for a day or on a more long-term basis.
With a motto of ‘fuel, focus and connect’, energising snacks and meals have been created and Charlie hopes the space will allow business people to connect and build relationships.
During the week the cafe is a dedicated space for working, which aims to minimise disruption from ‘crying children’ or people having a loud chat over lunch.
Charlie said: “I’ve spoken to some cafe owners who are trying to shoo people out who are working because they don’t have enough space.
“There’s a dilemma of how often do you need to order to be welcome.
“Whereas here we want to encourage people.”
A membership scheme will also offer discounts on food and drinks, and hiring meeting rooms.
At the weekend Charlie hopes the cafe - which is being managed by the team from The Larder in Oakham - will attract cyclists travelling through Rutland.
He has installed a bike rack which is covered by CCTV and plans to stream the footage onto televisions around the cafe.
“I am a keen cyclist,” the 47-year-old said.
“Rutland is a great place for cycling and on Saturday mornings there are more cyclists than cars on some roads.”
“It is becoming a booming sport.”
Charlie is the founder of wealth management firm Efficient Portfolio, which moved to the site Melton Road in 2017 following the closure of The White Lion pub.
After 20 years as a financial advisor, he decided it was time to do something different and stepped back from the business.
He has been renovating the building, which he owns, since the beginning of this year.
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