COMMUNE Waterloo
In 2016 I backed myself and took the gamble of leasing two massive warehouses side by side with a shared laneway on Bourke Street, Waterloo. With a combined 4000m2 and 12 unique bookable spaces, it became Sydney’s hottest venues for events, exhibitions and shoots.
The list of clients spans all the major brands; Samsung, Nike, Adidas, Fanta, Vans, Monster Children, VICE, Fente, IKEA, Google, Airtasker, Oporto, Lululemon, The Other Art Fair, Koala, Vivid, Levis, Puma, Red Bull just to name a few. I used this income from commercial bookings to sponsor countless community groups, artists and charities with free space, venue support and marketing. I also hosted my own COMMUNE branded events and workshops.
I stopped working freelance and completely focused on growing the business now I had two COMMUNE venues. I personally managed 100s of bookings, ran and maintained the venue, underwent a 12 month DA process with City of Sydney, insurances, licensing, partnerships, and built a team of six full time staff to support me to name a few of my duties. By 2019 the turnover was $1.1 million on a minimal spend and staffing.
After the announcement of my new venue in Newtown in 2019, the landlords tried to triple the rent because the assumed if I could buy a building on King Street I could afford a massive rent increase. During negotiations, the landlords abruptly pulled the plug and gave me four weeks to vacate, the consequence of this was the first nail in the coffin.
The buildings sat empty for nearly four years till 2023 when they were finally demolished to build more apartments.
