Couple opens Milwaukee Mix - a creative hub for small business owners

It may not be everyone's favorite sound, but a sharp knife scrapping against glass is music to one Milwaukee man's ears.

“I always needed to draw and make things. And the first time someone put a paintbrush in my hand felt good. The first time someone put a glass cutter in my hand it felt even better," Jon Schroder, who owns Cobalt Glassworks, said.

Cobalt Glassworks is a stained-glass repair and custom fabrication business. Schoder has been working with glass for about 25 years.

James Groh

“There’s something about the manipulating of glass and metal that is weird and special," he said.

He has been doing it for about 25 years. Recently, he moved into a new studio space on Milwaukee’s Lower East Side.

“It’s hard to commit and take seriously and feel legit and like a real business owner when you’re making things at your kitchen table or in your basement," he said. "I've done it. It can work. I did it for years, but when you have your own space that's dedicated for the work it feels more serious. And it just feels good, and I wanted that for other people."

That's why he and his wife Amanda opened Milwaukee Mix. A new co-working space at 2414 North Farwell Avenue just off North Avenue. There are co-working spaces throughout Milwaukee. The couple believes there is different based on the tenants they want to attract.

“So for us, it was really based on small local entrepreneurs. We’d love to have people that want office space as well, but we know there’s a need for people to be able to move out of their extra bedroom or basement to have space to work outside of their home," Amanda Schroder, who is also a realtor, said.

Watch the story to see what it looks like inside of the new co-working space...

Couple opens Milwaukee Mix, a creative hub for small business owners

The communal workspace is in an old doctor's office that was built in the 1950s. Many of the rooms for rent are old exam rooms. There's a slightly funk and vintage vibe that the owners are leaning into. The logo has atomic flair, there are blue and green toilets in the bathrooms, and sinks in each room. The owners said it's easy to remove the sinks but are leaving them in if clients could use them.

“Aestheticians, hair stylists, soap makers somebody who might find a sink good," Amanda said.

There are five 10x10 rooms upstairs that rent for $650 a month includes all amenities, utilities, and internet. Downstairs is a roughly 1,200-square-foot basement with a separate entrance for $2,000 a month. Some cosmetic work still needs to be done, but the owners expect it all to be done by the end of July.

James Groh

“We had always dreamed of having a space where we could build and support a small business community in Milwaukee," Amanda said.

You can reach out to Milwaukee Mix to inquire about studio space by going to its Instagram Page - Milwaukee Mix .

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