Brahs Only

November 8, 2016

The popular trend involving start-ups and small business operators renting a desk or two in special co-working offices is getting a new addition in Brisbane.

But what makes this one different is that it’s a “Men only” operation and already it’s coming under fire.

Nomadic Thinkers, the business behind the new co-working enterprise, promoted it as “an innovative way to address male related social issues”, adding they believed in the need for men to have a space to help “men be men” and “launch men in business and life”.

Nomadic Thinkers says it has the backing of six investors and will operate through a “hybridised co-working model with a gym space.” Membership of the space and the gym is open only to men.

The founders have acknowledged that the creation of a gender-restricted co-working space “is bound to ruffle some feathers.”

And it has.

Social media went into overdrive when on–line publication Junkee revealed details of the Nomadic Thinkers plans, aligning it with domestic violence prevention.

Samuel Monaghan, one of Nomadic Thinkers’ founders, told Junkee that there were “a couple of things that got us to this point.”

“We’d been working in coffee shops and at home and it wasn’t that conducive to working,” Monaghan said.

“We both had a mate who ended up in a violent situation with his wife. He pushed his wife over.”

According to Monaghan, domestic violence is an issue that “stems from depression in many cases”.

“Depression and suicide result from a lack of social support and community. Having a space where they [men] can be men is more of a preventative measure,” Monaghan said. “Healthy, happy men don’t hit their wives.”

On Junkee’s Facebook page people have called the founders “pigs” and “chauvinists”, saying their attitude toward domestic violence against women is “toxic masculinity” and “a weak excuse”.

Nomadic Thinkers released a statement apologising for making it seem “that we trivialise the significance of domestic violence”.

“Our intention is and has always been to highlight the seriousness and social costs of these issues, and take an immersive and proactive approach towards action,” it says.

“We believe that our space that combines mental, physical and social stimulation will be a catalyst for impact amongst the men of our community. Impact that is not reactive but also preventative.

“We look forward to continuing this conversation on how we as a society can address these serious issues in a way that builds and grows.”

The Nomadic Thinkers founders are currently in lease negotiations and the plan is to open up the space in January next year. Initially it will feature just a co-working space, cafe and a gym but “down the road we’re hoping to get a barber and a physio,” Monaghan says.

The Nomadic Thinkers took down their social sites yesterday after the Bondi Hipsters spoke their minds in a hysterical yet poignant manner and posted it to the Nomadic Thinkers Facebook page.  You can read this article here.

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