Support Houston's Community Hub, Wonderlikewander
Wonderlikewander is a multidisciplinary creative space devoted to being a safe space for community.
Project Description
-Monthly, we host yoga flow classes with Ali Michelle.
-We host WLW Open Mic, which showcases local artists, and takes place monthly in our space.
-Playas Gon Play, a karaoke/game night, a musically educational event, hosted by DJ Grave Digga.
Some Events We Are Proud To Have Hosted In Our Space
-Crawfish & Brews, an annual community event hosted by Boo’s Burgers, took place in our space.
-An incredible ADIDAS ad campaign video featuring Deun Ivory, was filmed in our photography studio.
-The Oasis wellness retreat was hosted by The Oasis Retreat team.
-Shaping The Culture live podcast event was hosted in our space by Ebenezer Endiryas and his team.
Design & urban design are a few of the things you can be assured that we will be sharing more of.
STAGES OF EACH PART OF THE BUSINESS:
1. Our coffee shop that has yet to be open, due to waiting on certain permitting, and needing to purchase certain remaining equipment. It is an ode to the "motherland", a true passion project of both Ruby (the owner) and her mother. With their family being from Ethiopia and that being the birthplace of coffee, their passion to be able to share authentic coffee is great. The wait for the inspection needed to move forward (over 1.5 years) has truly put a strain on our business, because our buildout is complete. Once we are able to make a few more equipment purchases and our final inspection is complete, our coffee shop space will be ready to open.
2. Our photography studio, better known as Bloom Studios, has been open and active now for 15 months. We have most of the photography equipment we would like to have, but are looking to have some funding allotted towards more equipment and marketing budget for the studio.
3. Our event venue is our main bread maker, as we have events throughout each week. In order to maintain the highest level of excellence within the space, as well as the exterior, a part of these funds would need to go towards landscaping, cleaning crew before/after events, hiring staff, purchasing a software that would help manage all of our bookings, inquiries, and tours.
4. Our creative co-working space is in the process of being completed upstairs. This particular space will be an extension of our event space after business hours. We have storage and equipment necessary for this shift to be possible, as needed. The co-working space consists of workspaces in multiple rooms, as well as a kitchen and common area. It will be a space for people to come, work at desks, have meetings, and more. We hope to have setup and minor renovations completed by end of this month, to open up the coworking space by June 2023. These funds would help us in being able to make sure we have necessary protections in being able to facilitate such a concept. It would also assist us to be able to purchase monitors, secure access systems, and other resources we would like to have available for those who will be members in our space.
5. Our community garden is maintained weekly by our community garden volunteer crew. We are looking to be able to re-install our sprinkler system, as well as get more equipment for storing our garden materials in our storage shed (shelves, containers, etc).
- Our Challenge: There are hundreds of creative spaces that provide space and resources, but not many that create safe spaces for POC in more ways than one. There are many spaces that provide space for experiences, and many that provide space to create, but not many that provide both. We know we are the answer to that. However, in order for us to continue to grow and support our community, we must have the support (both financially and through various efforts) from our community to be able to continue to build these concepts and fund the growth of these businesses.
Our Vision: We know the need for safe spaces for artists and creative professionals to be able to create and grow in community. We know that we have been that answer for so many in this city, and even beyond. We have physical workspaces and our global social media community that we serve. We want to continue to be able to support our community by providing space, tools, connections, and even one day soon be able to provide microgrants to creatives in our city.
We also have different give-back initiatives we lead every year in giving back to our city and supporting our community during natural disasters & times of need.
During Winter Storm Uri in 2021, we were able to provide over 900 people in Houston with essential goods by hosting donation drives and distribution events.
and be able to hire staff necessary for operations in all areas mentioned above, as well.
Our first goal to hit is $50,000. We must hit first goal by no later than August.
We hope to reach $50,000 by the end of May, and our overall goal of $200,000 by August.
Thank you for your continued support.
Thank you so much for your support in helping Wonderlikewander kick off this initiative!
photos by: Josef Pierre & Troy Montes
Updates
The Campaign FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions:
Will we be updated on the updates happening at Wonderlikewander? Yes, we will be sure to send monthly updates to all of our campaign supporters.
When will our incentives be ready to retrieve? All incentives will be sent soon after 1st phase of campaign is complete.
Just Because I Care
We will shoutout you out on our page, 10% off studio booking (for photoshoots)
Wonderlikewander 'growth' tote bag, 10% off studio booking, & shoutout on our IG page
free 2 hour photoshoot studio session, tote bag, 10% off studio booking, and shoutout on our page!
$100 voucher to shop WLW clothing collection, Free 2 hour photoshoot studio session, tote bag & shoutout on our page, + 10% off studio booking (for photoshoots)
1 month free in coworking space, $100 voucher to shop WLW clothing collection, Free 2 hour photoshoot studio session, tote bag & shoutout on our page, + 10% off studio booking (for photoshoots)
Rewards
Just Because I Care
We will shoutout you out on our page, 10% off studio booking (for photoshoots)
Wonderlikewander 'growth' tote bag, 10% off studio booking, & shoutout on our IG page
free 2 hour photoshoot studio session, tote bag, 10% off studio booking, and shoutout on our page!
$100 voucher to shop WLW clothing collection, Free 2 hour photoshoot studio session, tote bag & shoutout on our page, + 10% off studio booking (for photoshoots)
1 month free in coworking space, $100 voucher to shop WLW clothing collection, Free 2 hour photoshoot studio session, tote bag & shoutout on our page, + 10% off studio booking (for photoshoots)