The Koba mission

Evidence-based

We don’t do greenwash. If someone is going to use ‘sustainable’ in any way to describe what they’re selling to you the onus should be on them to prove it. We’re deeply committed to third party verified data.

We have worked with Madaster, a circular construction platform, to document and track all materials used in the fit-out of Koba @ 100 Barbirolli, Manchester. The material passport generated by their platform discloses material provides data on the fit-out of our offices. We will prepare and release material passports for all Koba properties and seek improvements in the carbon footprint of our buildings.

We are tracking our operational sustainability through the Planet Mark platform, with our 2024 results due to be published later this year.

Radically transparent

Our data won’t always tell a great story – there is no silver bullet for the workspace industry’s sustainability problems. We’re committed to giving the unvarnished truth because it helps our customers understand where we are and focuses us on pushing ourselves further.

We will publish Madaster circularity passports for each of our properties on our website and as we progress. Providing open commentary on the achievements and areas for improvement from each fit-out.

Circularity

A circular economy is a system where materials never actually become waste. Instead, products and materials are kept in circulation through maintenance, reuse, refurbishment, remanufacture, recycling, and composting. We’ll collaborate with our supply chains to increase circularity through a science-based.

Production of our Madaster material passport for Koba @ 100 Barbirolli has been undertaken in collaboration with Cast – our office design and build contractor. The passport tracks circularity (amount of secondary materials used in construction) and detachability (amount of materials and products that could be disassembled without damage).

Renewable energy & net zero carbon

All our energy is renewable, but that’s not enough. We’re committed to pushing the industry to make sure it’s generated when we use it, and that it wouldn’t exist without us buying it. We’ll work hard to minimise what energy we do use, and we’ll offset responsibly and meaningfully.

Working with Planet Mark we will identify targets to reduce our carbon footprint.

Healthy outcomes

There is more to health than yoga, pilates and plants. Our focus is on healthy outcomes, and we regularly check that what we’re doing is contributing to them. Like on indoor air, which on average is seven times worse than outdoor air, or minimising toxins by building with circular design principles.

Koba’s first office, Koba @ 100 Barbirolli, was awarded the World’s first WELL co-working certification. This highlights space with a focus on clean air, healthy and varied food and drinks, and restorative space for our members.

Pioneers of purpose

We imagine a world in which most office buildings offer their residents opportunities to unlock their skills and goodwill to bring about meaningful, measurable change in the nearby community. We’ll demonstrate it can be done whilst collaborating with industry and academia to develop the evidence base supporting it.

Open source

If striving to be the best simply means someone else is worse, we all fail. We’re committed to sharing our lessons learned with the broader industry to speed up the meaningful, scalable impact we’ll all benefit from.

We have released our Madaster circularity passport for Koba @ 100 Barbirolli, Manchester – Koba’s first site. We are committed to publishing material passports for all future sites, alongside a critical assessment of what we have done well but more importantly, what we can do better for site.

We use the opportunities provided to us at industry events such as GCUC and Footprint to share our experiences, areas for improvement and what can be achieved in the flex workspace industry.

A great employer

We want to deliver great workspaces that are better for people and planet, then our own team are our most valuable resource. We have a gut feeling of what a great employer is, and we collaborate closely with all our people to become one.

We provide our team with mental health support through Spill, and physical health support through Classpass. All team members are covered by life insurance and have access to private medical insurance.