HATCH: the full story (but with pictures)

Rates: 16 options

Two questions define your rate: how often do you want to be here, and how stable do you want your usage to be? We offer four levels of presence—three of which are typical for coworking spaces, and a fourth one added for businesses looking to grow within the space. You can also choose between four tiers of loyalty—depending on whether flexibility or predictability is more important to you. Rates are excl. VAT and invoiced based on your selected loyalty plan.

More than just infrastructure. It’s about knowledge sharing.

You’re surrounded by people in the same field. That’s valuable experience, a sounding board, fewer headaches.

Seminar: every week we host an open seminar covering a general theme (like new regulations or technical topics), or showcasing a project.

Down The Hatch: every two weeks we host an afterwork drink—an informal gathering and a great time to check in with others.

Incidentally: you can always tap someone on the shoulder—in person or via chat. You can also browse our book or materials library for specific info.

Facilities: ready to launch your practice

Facilities: ready to launch your practice

Workspace: desk, office chair, storage, external screen and keyboard

Two fully equipped kitchens with lunch space: free water (still/sparkling), tea, coffee, milk, soup. Equipment: three fridges, a freezer, combo oven, two sinks, two dishwashers, a cooktop, microwave, dishes

Supply room: two printers (colour A4/A3, scan), various paper types, binding machine

Model room: tables you can leave things on, foam cutter, light panel, cutting mats, glue, basic materials

Material library: two laser distance meters, moisture meter, salt test strips, clipboards, folding rule, measuring tape, safety helmets, shoe covers

Sample cabinet: freely accessible with hundreds of material samples

Library: open-access library with reference books on architecture, design, urbanism, and landscape

Three meeting rooms: with projection, see details below

Alternative workspaces: standing desk, two lounge areas, two phone booths, three low-stimulation “focus” workstations

Digital: full WiFi access everywhere, plus wired internet at the desk clusters, and HATCH branding to expand your visibility

Get off your island. That’s why.

Belgium has one of the highest architect-to-resident ratios in Europe. Yet, we have surprisingly few large architectural firms compared to our neighbours. We’re fragmented into many small practices. That speaks to ambition and pride—making a name for yourself and embracing entrepreneurship. But it also means many have to figure things out alone. That benefits neither the newcomer nor the broader perception of our field’s professionalism.

HATCH offers a home base for architects starting out, scaling up, or looking for a Ghent-based hub to complement their main office. You get context and support in your field, while fully retaining your independence. Knowledge sharing, right at the workplace. HATCH is founded on combating the “forced lone wolf” model and replacing it with structured—but optional—learning networks. Autonomy and community, that’s the balance.

A habitat for a specific species. That’s it.

HATCH is a coworking space for emerging architectural talent. Professionals from related disciplines are welcome: architects, landscape architects, engineers, contractors, designers. Everyone works side by side in a bright open-plan office. Desk clusters are designed to encourage conversation. You can retreat to one of three meeting rooms, the focus booths we call “blinders,” or the phone booths we’ve dubbed “hush boxes.” There's also a lunch area, a book and material library, and a model/photo studio.

Every coworking space shares infrastructure. That’s the baseline. HATCH goes further by also sharing specific architectural knowledge. Because we target a specific group, the shared expertise is not just entrepreneurial but also profession-specific. This creates a community that’s always evolving, with members coming and going—but the pack holds together. Precisely because of the informality and autonomy, knowledge exchange happens organically.

Shared time is time won. That’s how.

Informal, but also facilitated. We share books, samples, laser meters. There are casual lunches, but also biweekly seminars. A shared chat and afterwork drinks. A lot of conversation happens—on many levels. Unit prices and contractor contacts are exchanged. Contracts are compared. Tips for socials or websites. Our little Ghent experiment has even sparked formal collaborations between members: they take on projects together or join forces in competitions. At those moments, the network becomes almost tangible.

Ghent and beyond. A network route for the future.

Like any network, this one gets stronger with scale. More members means more robustness, and even more information flowing. More voices around the table. More advice. And you still decide for yourself what to do with it—you remain you.

Currently, there’s one location: in Ghent. It started as a bit of an experiment. We had an office that was too big, and thought sharing it might be fun. Four years later, we’ve had a fantastic ride. So much fun, knowledge, and above all, fulfilment. We’ve seen many architects and allied professionals come and go—people we’ve seen grow and thrive.

We dream of one day having a landing place in every architectural hotspot in Belgium. A portal for the learning architect, to gather knowledge and experience and build their independent career with solid support.