Antonette Benting doesn’t just build community; she is designing belonging across an entire continent.

As the leader behind GCUC Africa and a powerhouse operator in the coworking industry, Antonette has helped shape what community-first workplaces look like in one of the most dynamic and fast-growing regions in the world. Her work is proof that coworking is not a one-size-fits-all model, it’s a movement deeply influenced by culture, people, and place.

From leading coworking teams to scaling member experiences without losing soul, Antonette brings sharp insight, real talk, and a deep belief that community is a strategy, not a buzzword.

In this episode, Antonette sits down with Liz Elam, founder of GCUC, for a candid conversation that puts a spotlight on GCUC Africa, regional leadership, and what operators everywhere can learn from the innovation happening across the African coworking ecosystem. Together, they explore leadership, resilience, cultural nuance, and why the future of work belongs to operators who lead with intention and local relevance.

This episode is a must-listen for anyone who cares about community, culture, and the global evolution of coworking.

Connect with Antonette Benting:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/antonette-benting/

Learn more about GCUC Africa:

https://africa.gcuc.co/

Connect with Liz Elam: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizelam

Learn more about GCUC & get your tickets for GCUC North America: https://na.gcuc.co/

Watch the GCUC Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@GCUCPodcast/videos

In this episode of the GCUC Podcast, Amanda Neanor, founder of NEANOR Projects, brings a behind-the-scenes perspective from the worlds of private membership clubs, luxury hospitality, and coworking. With leadership experience at Soho House, NeueHouse, and Platinum Clubs of the World, Amanda has spent her career designing and operating spaces where community, culture, and commercial success actually align.

Amanda joins host Liz Elam, founder of GCUC, for a candid conversation about the invisible details that separate “nice space” from truly magnetic experience. Together, they unpack what most operators miss, from service culture and onboarding to brand identity, surprise-and-delight moments, and why community is built through intention, not amenities.

They dive into:

Why hospitality thinking is essential to the future of coworking

The first signals that tell you whether a space will be special or forgettable

What coworking operators should steal from private clubs and luxury hotels

How to balance aesthetics, operations, and revenue without compromising experience

The role of rules, rituals, and human connection in building lasting communities

If you’re creating, operating, or rethinking coworking spaces, private clubs, or experience-led environments, this episode is packed with sharp insight, real-world examples, and ideas you can apply immediately.

Bonus: Amanda will also be joining us live at GCUC New York, making this episode the perfect primer before meeting her in person.

Connect with Amanda:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-neanor-980a20109/

Learn more about NEANOR Projects:

https://www.neanorprojects.com/

Connect with Liz Elam: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizelam

Learn more about GCUC & get your tickets for GCUC North America: https://na.gcuc.co/

Watch the GCUC Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@GCUCPodcast/videos

Rupert Dean isn’t just rethinking coworking; he’s reengineering how people experience work, culture, and connection. As CEO and Co-Founder of x+why, Rupert operates at the intersection of hospitality, flexible workspace, and purpose-driven business, designing environments that prioritize people, planet, and profit, in that order. With nearly 600,000 square feet of space under management across the UK, he’s building a new blueprint for what offices can be in a post-loneliness, post-remote-only world.

In this episode of the GCUC Podcast, GCUC founder and host Liz Elam sits down with Rupert to continue the conversation sparked on stage at Coworking Europe in Berlin. Together, they dig into why offices should be destinations, not obligations, and how hospitality, food & beverage, members’ clubs, and programming are no longer “nice-to-haves,” but core infrastructure for thriving workspaces.

Rupert opens up about his unconventional journey from corporate finance law to founding x+why how discovering his “why” reshaped his career, and why coworking operators must stop thinking like landlords and start thinking like hosts. He shares how x+why approaches hospitality in-house (and why outsourcing F&B often fails), what landlords are really asking for right now, and how flexible workspaces can actively combat isolation and burnout.

Liz and Rupert also explore why culture can’t truly be built remotely, the rise of members’ clubs and hospitality-led workplaces, and how events, wellness, and thoughtful programming can drive real revenue. They dive into why mental health needs to be a baseline offering rather than a bonus, what the coworking industry can learn from hotels, restaurants, and private clubs, and ultimately why the future of work depends on spaces that help people feel a sense of belonging, not just a place to get work done.

This is a bold, honest, and energizing conversation about experience-driven design, human connection, and the responsibility workspace leaders have to society. Rupert brings equal parts insight, optimism, and “wear life like a loose garment” energy, and it’s contagious.

A must-listen for coworking operators, landlords, developers, and anyone building spaces meant to bring people together.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rupert-dean-xandwhy

https://www.xandwhy.co.uk/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizelam

https://na.gcuc.co/

https://www.youtube.com/@GCUCPodcast/videos