How to get your own private sound-proofed Costa booth for remote working in Manchester

Remote workers in Manchester now have another option if they need somewhere to take an important work call or join a meeting.

My Work Booth has teamed up with Costa Coffee to introduce its quiet, confidential work pods into some of its coffee shops as a pilot scheme.

And two of them have been installed in the city-region.

What is My Work Booth and its pod?

My Work Booth has created a sound-proofed pod which can be used by remote workers needing somewhere private and confidential during the day.

It has created the devices as increasing numbers of people leave the conventional office behind with the help of tech and mobile equipment enabling people who would once have been behind a desk able to work anywhere.

It is running a pilot scheme for its pods and has teamed up with Costa Coffee to install four of them.

The two in Manchester are at the Costa branches on Portland Street and at Media City in Salford.

My Work Booth is also trialling the pods in London and hopes to roll more of them out at locations yet to be announced in March and April.

How do the booths work?

The company is using the Framery booth, which has been installed in offices needing a spot for peace and quiet and which has won awards for providing somewhere that blocks out external sounds even in noisy places.

The booths have charging points for mobile devices and provide somewhere for workers to do individual tasks that require concentration, make confidential calls and participate in video conferences,

Each one has a stool, a table, a light, a power socket and a supply of fresh filtered air.

To access a booth, users install the My Work Booth app, select the date, time, and length of their booking at their choice of Costa Coffee branch and then pay with a debit or credit card.

Workers will then be emailed a QR code which is used to access the booth.

What has been said about the partnership between My Work Booth and Costa Coffee?

Neil Jenkins, founder of My Work Booth, said: “The way people are working has changed, with the number of people working the traditional five days a week based in an office no longer the norm.

“I personally was spending all my time between appointments in cafes, looking for the nearest power point and finding that making professional calls was impossible with all the loud music and chatter.

“I saw a gap in the market for a rentable quiet space where you could get some proper work done.”