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Update (2024): Second Home Hollywood is now called The Preserve LA. This post was written when it was formerly called Second Home Hollywood.
Do you want to know what the process of building Second Home The Preserve was like? Read my interview with architect Diego Cano-Lasso here.
During the time I’ve been here in LA, I’ve had a few job interviews at shared coworking spaces. While these were nice, they did not catch my attention in the slightest, nor did they inspire me to drag my laptop from my apartment to spend the day there.
Like most people working from home, I don’t have a designated office in my living room, which oftentimes leads to humdrum. I do go to my office a few times, a week but not full-time like I used to.
Never did I consider working at a shared coworking space until I came across Second Home.
This London-based coworking space with offices in London and Lisbon, opened their first US location in November 2019. The space was designed by Madrid-based architecture company Selgascano. For those of you who don’t know, I grew up in Madrid so it’s always nice to see Spanish companies making their footprint in the US.
Conveniently located in the middle of Hollywood across from the new Target, Second Home sits in a very inconspicuous location. Chances are you would never notice this place unless someone told you about it.
This place is definitely not your average shared coworking space. While the other places I had been to in the past had an industrial-like decor, Second Home was designed to be an urban jungle in the middle of LA. The biophilic interior combined with the 1970’s retro futuristic architecture will make you wish Second Home was your everyday office. Second Home is populated with over 6,500 native LA plants.
Your first time there, they take you on a free 25-minute tour where they give you a full rundown of the place. Andrew was my tour guide that day. I was shocked by how big this place was! It seemed like we were never going to stop walking, but this was a great way to take in the beauty of the place before purchasing a day-pass.
Second Home also doubles as a rental space for photoshoots and other productions.
The ground floor features a common space with a restaurant, a waiting area, and a bookstore. Then, an interior hallway connects to a two-story building that wraps around a courtyard.
The best part is the long concrete path with plants and trees that loops around and connects to multiple oval-shaped office pods. A few of these are private for business members only. Thank goodness they have arrows on the floor so you know where to keep going. I loved this area. It reminded me of being in the Caribbean, but instead of bungalow hotels, these were bungalow offices. I love greenery and plants as they bring me a sense of peace and relaxation, and walking through this green oasis made me feel like I was in a tropical place.
Once you walk past this area, you get to an open space where there’s a day-care center, and lounge chairs laid out.
This long concrete path concludes with the big courtyard I mentioned above, surrounded by tall trees covered in twinkle lights. There’s also a fountain and communal tables.
From the courtyard, you see the entrance area, so if you don’t want to use the concrete pathway, you can take a shortcut without leaving the building.
This part of the building features a conference hall and more office spaces. There is a curved staircase that leads you to the upper floor. You see red carpet flooring in the hallway connecting to more pod-studios. The indoor space on the second floor concluded with a beautiful terrace, where you could see the oval yellow office pod roofs surrounded by lush greenery and the LA palm trees in the distance. Seeing the yellow roofs from the terrace reminded me of lily pads on a pond.
As soon as I got home, I purchased a one-day pass to work there.
I don’t have the luxury of having a balcony and my apartment doesn’t get much natural light either. There are so many days that I wish I was somewhere else getting my work done while enjoying the beautiful day, which is almost always in LA.
To my disappointment, the second time I went to Second Home, it was overcast but the temperature was really nice. I picked the terrace as my designated workspace. If you’re going to work in this area, please know that you won’t be in utter silence: business meetings, people talking on the phone and loud footsteps on the wooden floor may not be the best choice if you’re easily distracted by ambient noises.
Nonetheless, I surprisingly managed to get a lot of work done and was not disturbed by these sounds. I even overheard a call that contained a very compelling movie pitch. If you’re seeking a quiet space, then the indoor office pods will be the best fit for you.
Before I left, I wanted to get a feel for the office pods I walked by in the beginning. I like their no-eating policy, so you will not be aggravated by food smells. There were four people, including me, working in one of these oval pods. It was super quiet except for the ventilation.
There is a restaurant, but it’s currently closed due to COVID. However, there’s a self-serve coffee machine where you can get free coffee. Despite the lack of food options, the receptionist told me that food delivery apps are the best way to get food, and if you order from Sweetgreen before 11 am, you get free delivery! I could see this perfectly because while I was waiting to meet Andrew, there was an incessant flow of delivery drivers coming in and out dropping off orders: Chipotle, Sweetgreen… you name it.
A one-time day-pass is $25 $35. A 5 day-pass bundle (5 times) is $110 and a 10 day-pass bundle is $200. The last two have to be used within a 3-month period. Then, we escalate into top-tier business memberships and production rentals. You can find all the rates on their website here.
All the passes are transferable and they give you ample flexibility if you have to change the date last minute. No cancellation fees. They started implementing the day-pass option during the pandemic. Now, there is a nice way for those people who don’t want to commit to a full-on membership.
Will this be my everyday office? Thankfully, I have a full-time job that I go to a few times a week, so the answer is no, but it’s definitely at the forefront of my mind whenever home fatigue creeps in. Since it’s close to where I live, it’s much more tempting to purchase a one-day pass on a whim.
On the other hand, if you own your own business and you’re looking to rent a space, this could be the perfect choice for you.
What a commendable job the Selgascano team did. This is their office on the outskirts of Madrid!
The way Selgascano merges nature in the workplace in all the Second Home locations is something I’ve never seen before. Working at Second Home for the day felt like I had left LA and transported into another realm.
There’s an underground parking area right across from the Target parking structure. Once you park, just walk up the stairs and follow the pathway to the large white panelled wood door.
For day-pass tickets, whether you want to run a quick errand or you want to get food, you’re always welcome to leave and re-enter Second Home as many times as you want before 6 pm, which it’s their closing time.
There are so many exclusive lounge places in NY and LA, like Soho House or Model’s Lounge Club in NY, a membership-only underground lounge exclusive for models in NY, that will only approve you based on your wealth status.
Second Home prides itself on its welcoming environment and diverse workspace — There were people of all races working there. I didn’t notice a single ounce of pretentiousness, neither by the staff nor the members. If you opt for a membership, you will get special perks like events and exclusive book release signings. Unfortunately, Second Home does not open on the weekends, but they’re always hosting some sort of event for members.
