MESH Cowork sits above a local coffee shop in the heart of downtown Bakersfield. Walking up the stairs you’ll find an open room with lots of windows, offering natural light, and a view of downtown. With plenty of desks and space to work, there’s always room for one more at our table.

What separates MESH Cowork from other locations is that we cater to remote workers, freelancers, parents, and self-employed professionals while focusing on creating a community. Virtual offices, executive suites, and home offices are useful, but at Mesh, we’ve created a space for independent thinkers to come together and escape the solitude of the home office, or the sounds of a busy coffee shop. You only pay for the time and space that you use. No need for a lengthy commitment when you might only need a place to work for a few days, or even a couple of hours.

The members of MESH are like an informal team of technology partners that, while independent, share information and encouragement with others in our community setting. Each member brings unique value to the space. Having this open environment unites a diverse group of professionals into a cohesive one. Everyone benefits from each other. That is what makes coworking unique. It is not just about working where and when you want. It is about the people you end up working with, and that makes all the difference.

"As far as we’re concerned, if you want something done badly enough, do it yourself!"

		We’re Scott Burton (l)  and Tabari Brannon (r), proud founders of MESH Cowork. It started back in 2014 when a freelancer coming from Los Angeles posted on Reddit asking if Bakersfield had a coworking space. At the time there wasn’t an established location in Bakersfield, but that original post on Reddit sparked something. We saw a genuine need for a place where freelancers, small business owners, and other innovative folks could come to work as a community. We sought to create this place. As soon as people walked through the door, we wanted them to feel the excitement and energy of other talented individuals bouncing off one another, and we wanted a place where networking would come naturally in a non-competitive environment. The range of expertise you’ll find at MESH includes web and app development, IT solutions, marketing, business startup, and development. This diversity also enables active collaborations across disciplines. Our members share a set of core values: community, openness, collaboration, accessibility, and sustainability. We’re committed to the success of individual entrepreneurs and the coworking community as a whole. We provide a space for you to meet regularly with fellow software developers and entrepreneurs. Both of us had tried in the past to create this space, but it had never worked out. Scott had made an effort to create a coworking space in Bakersfield through a series of Meetups for local programmers, while Tabari had also begun hosting Meetup events with a similar goal. Eventually, we crossed paths and what had never worked out before when done individually, now began to take form as we joined our strengths. In April of 2015 Mesh Cowork LLC opened its doors and began welcoming local remote workers to come and collaborate with one another, or simply escape their home office. We set out to accomplish a goal to not just create a place for people to work, but to expand on the strong community that Bakersfield is known for. Part of our vision included providing educational opportunities for both youth and adults to learn new skills.MESH Cowork is the technology hub that supports Bakersfield and Kern County. We provide a space for professionals to meet, collaborate, and develop ideas. We provide classes for the workforce to retool themselves through instructional programming classes, and we make a large effort to educate future generations with skills that will make them successful no matter what field they end up in. We give local businesses access to professionals that can fulfill their needs without having to outsource to businesses in Los Angeles or the Bay area, who don’t understand their needs. Simply put, we keep it local.

	Scott Burton, a software engineer who worked for Silicon Valley startups and develops hybrid mobile and web applications. He has previously tried a version of a coworking space in the past but without the support system that he now has with his business partner, the original attempt didn’t last. When the opportunity of a true coworking space appeared Scott stepped forward
	Tabari Brannon is the co-founder of MESH Cowork, LLC, and Organizer of the Bakersfield Startup Meetup. Tabari served as a staff chaplain at a local Bakersfield hospital. His Master’s level training in ministry has taught him how to start, nurture, and grow communities around shared values. Tabari was able to translate his expertise in communities into several start-up ventures. Tabari's vision for MESH is to establish multiple locations in Bakersfield and the San Joaquin Valley. He aims to provide a space for vibrant entrepreneurial and tech communities that not only decrease the barriers of entry for workspace but also provide its members with a valuable network and services and that help them to succeed.