Founding Flock Feature: Jenny Poon
”Small businesses and entrepreneurs don’t need to leave downtown Phoenix to solve their problems. People downtown want improvement and have the power to do so. We’re on the cusp of something great.”
These words, spoken by our own Jenny Poon at a panel discussion, were just a glimpse into Poon’s faith in Phoenix. Like many entrepreneurs, Poon grew tired of working in a corporate structure that made its workers feel as if they had no direct impact. Equipped with a much more appealing backup plan, Poon created her business, eeko studio, a boutique design agency.
“I started working from home, but I got a little stir crazy working along after working in groups for so long,” she said. “I started talking to some other freelancers and they had the same feeling.”
Poon began looking for the right space. When she fell across the original CO+HOOTS space on 7th Street and Garfield, Poon saw the potential to open it up to the public and create something bigger than she once thought. She developed the CO+HOOTS concept and began branding it. Then she reached out to Matt Clower, an acquaintance, about the idea. He was on board immediately.
The concept grew from there. CO+HOOTS started as a small group and organically grew into something much larger.
“We have learned how to grow it, and we see the larger picture now,” Poon said. “Similar to any startup process, there were trials aplenty when building up CO+HOOTS.
“There were a lot of people who didn’t get it or didn’t believe that this could happen in Phoenix due to lack of talent and culture. I believe we have proven them wrong. Phoenix is a hidden gem, and once people experience it, theyll see it.”
Poon’s faith in Phoenix paired with her unwillingness to stop moving forward not only play a major role in how she has cultivated and grown CO+HOOTS, but sheds light on one of the key traits of her personality.
“I’m very competitive, most of my close friends know that,” she said, laughing.
When she’s not playing Boss Lady, as she is endearingly nicknamed, Poon loves playing tennis and challenging herself at a series of activities. She also has an ongoing list of problems and things she wants to solve.
“Every time I think of something I don’t know the answer to, I write it down,” she said. “As I figure it out, I cross them off. Hopefully one day I will have them all crossed off.”
Poon credits her mom for all of her success.
“Once you’re older, you realize how much influence your parents had,” she said. “When you’re younger, you don’t realize it. But then you grow up and you realize how much you are exactly the same as them, and you wish that you had learned more and taken a more of their wisdom. I know that everything I’ve done today is stemmed from what I’ve learned from her.”
Though Poon has proved herself to be a successful entrepreneur, nothing seems to excite her as much as the idea of Phoenix developing and flourishing.
“Everyone has an open, relatable, collaborative personality,” she said. “I don’t know what it is about Phoenix that brings that out of people, the idea that they can create whatever they want. A place where ideas flourish and failure is OK. That’s why world renowned chefs start here and build an empire. You come in, hear stories of ideas that people decided to act on and were successful because of support.
Poon is much more than a business woman, and has created something greater than an incubator. She invites any and all ideas, and sees the bigger picture for Phoenix. She saw the opportunities and kept going to create serendipitous opportunities for over 70 businesses.
“We have met a lot of people here, so when people say there isn’t talent in Phoenix, we can say ‘No. You’re wrong.’ CO+HOOTS is building that connectivity,” she said. “The people are what makes us distinct. People don’t realize it’s not the space that matters, but the people that fill it.”
