Livonia businesswoman’s flexibility during COVID pandemic vaulted her co-working space past hurdles

Lisa Mininni was willing to move walls (literally) to keep her company vibrant

How did Lisa Mininni successfully steer her Livonia coworking and conference space business through a once-in-a-century pandemic that emphasized isolation and working from home?

By following through on her clients’ wishes — whether it required building, moving or tearing down walls, or adding high-tech equipment (360-degree cameras) and/or everyday items (high-speed printers).

“My space was 100% filled during most of the pandemic,” revealed Mininni, the founder of Business Innovation Lab CoWorking & Conference Center (38221 Plymouth Road, Livonia) and the president of Excellerate Associates, an organization that teaches business owners how to scale their companies and build cultures of distinction, among other services.

“We flipped the switch on coworking. If people said they wanted a private office, we’d move walls to create the space they needed. If they needed a printer, we stepped up and got them printers.”

Mininni’s spacious 8,100-square-foot facility was built for the demands of pre-pandemic coworking, which, in the words of Wikipedia, “is an arrangement in which workers of different companies share an office space, allowing cost savings and convenience through the use of common infrastructures, such as equipment, utilities, and receptionist and custodial services.”

Sharing — a long-embraced and celebrated habit — was frowned upon once the COVID-19 virus emerged simply because people didn’t want to share the same air.

“Once factoring in the accelerated, and somewhat spontaneous, transition to work-from-home, on the backend of the infamous WeWork IPO, it seemed the casket was set to close on the coworking office scene,” a 2021 article on GeekTime.com forecasted.

The article went on to state that only those coworking companies that adapted properly — like Mininni’s — survived.

“At the beginning of COVID, our 2,700-square-foot conference room took a hit,” Mininni said. “But after a while, we found that business people wanted bigger rooms that allowed for social distancing, so it rebounded quickly.

“Now that the pandemic has eased, we’re finding that a lot of companies have done away with their former office spaces so employees are looking to the Business Innovation Lab CoWorking Conference Center for private offices. And we’re delivering what they want.”

Mininni has turned to technology to meet some of her clients’ demands. She has added a 360-degree camera in one decent-sized space so that offsite meeting members can be patched in to attend important gatherings.

“It was all about being flexible,” said Mininni. “Those who were, survived the whole COVID crisis just fine.”

Mininni revealed her company has a 1,400-square-foot private suite available for the first time since before the pandemic.

“It is perfect for an IT company that has a lot of computer and equipment,” she said.

For an onsite tour or appointment with Business Innovation Lab, call 734-274-9181.

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