MILWAUKEE — On a Tuesday morning, Kendrick Kinlow was at his office working on a task that may seem mundane.

Kinlow owns KENK Creative Agency, a firm which specializes in corporate branding and marketing materials. On this day, he was attaching small wooden sticks to the back of printed materials for a political campaign.

What You Need To Know

  • Ambition Center opened up in 2021

  • The goal of Ambition Center is to offer coworking space to Milwaukee's north side

  • The center provides classes and training sessions to help grow small businesses

It may seem like a day-to-day task, but Kinlow said he enjoys it because of his workplace surroundings. Kinlow is a member at Ambition Center, a coworking space on Milwaukee’s north side.

“Upon arrival, just the bright colors, the bright clean space, the owner was very welcoming and inviting. I felt immediately connected with the space. I felt at home,” said Kinlow.

Ambition Center, which opened in 2021, provides desk space, meeting rooms and access to common areas to small business owners. While coworking spaces have grown in popularity since the COVID-19 pandemic, most are located in suburban areas or in downtown areas of cities. However, Ambition Center is different, located on the city’s north side.

Ajamou Butler is Ambition Center’s events coordinator. Butler said with a focus on entrepreneurs and helping to build up Black-owned businesses, the center serves an important purpose. Butler said those are some of Ambition Center’s primary goals.

“Bringing young professionals, entrepreneurs of all different backgrounds, especially those of us in communities of color. Bringing us together in one hub and saying how can we all sharpen each other? How can we put this under one umbrella, one roof and use each other’s resources?” said Butler.

In addition to providing office space, Butler said Ambition Center works to foster collaboration and growth for their members. Butler said the center holds monthly events featuring speakers from the local business community.

With the success of Ambition Center, Butler hopes to see the concept expand to other parts of Milwaukee and other urban centers as well.

“I have traveled all around. The need for entrepreneurs, young professionals, those that have that hunger in them for that business thing, that marketing thing, education thing, there is such the need for us to be able to come together in fellowship as one,” said Butler.

To learn more about Ambition Center, you can visit its website.

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