About Us
We are a family owned business run by a dynamic, young Samoan team. Locally led and globally minded, we lead with both head and heart to serve the Pacific.
Our services help freelancers, small business owners, and remote workers to be productive and do their best work in a shared and collaborative environment.
We build community by providing a space that ignites passion and creativity, enables chance encounters, and connects people to the right resources at the right time.
Our Story
It all starts in 2017, with an old storage room at OSM HQ and a dream. The dusty storage room was being under-utilised but we saw the potential that this space had to be a hub for connecting Samoa to the world.
After renovating the room and fully kitting it out with video teleconference kits and audio visual tools “The Hub” meeting room was born.
“The Hub” was the first iteration of this dream which my sister and cofounder, Olisana pitched at the Inaugural Youth Co-Lab Competition in 2018. This pitch was rooted in a vision of a ’community’ — a space where innovators, leaders, and creators could meet under one roof, share ideas over a meal, brainstorm, and build solutions together. She received the Runner-Up Award at the UN Digital Pacific Conference and was later invited to Sydney, Australia for the Inaugral Ideas Exchange by the International Centre for Democratic Partnerships (2018) and Hanoi, Vietnam for the Asia-Pacific Pitchfest by Youth Co:Lab (2019).
Before 2019, tech hubs, innovation centers and coworking spaces were all the rage in development circles. Everyone wanted to build or fund one but when news emerged about COVID-19, all the talk of coworking and shared spaces came to a stand-still as Samoa implemented a national lockdown and people started remote working to self-isolate during the pandemic. Whilst the economy is now recovering and conversations around the business model sound optimistic post-COVID, coworking spaces would remain in the ideation, conceptual or feasibility stage.
Over the years, our team have contributed to many dialogues, consultations, and 1:1 meetings, stating how important such a space would be for Samoa’s private sector and innovation ecosystem. We have also submitted pitch decks, drawings, prototypes, proposals and application forms to a myriad of potential partners. In doing so, we found that the biggest barriers to funding was the high infrastructure costs associated with being first-to-market, partnerships for growth, and that the sustainability plan depended heavily on a privately owned enterprise.
Ever so often, we would have someone say, “What a lovely office space you have! I wish I could work here” or the joking remark, “Do you take walk-ins? Haha”.
In the last 3 years, we have also received requests to create workstations in our event space using folding tables and plastic chairs, this is often followed by the question: “Would you ever consider renting out your desks?”.
Even our half-day rates were birthed from email enquiries such as: “Can I book your meeting rooms for a zoom call/ webinar/ interview/ quiet work day?”
As our Mentor likes to say, “Rejection is only a redirection”.
True to our calling, we only heard one thing loud and clear: It was not that the market didn’t have the ‘hunger’ or ‘appetite’ but rather that there was no ‘kitchen’ built to adequately feed and fuel the demand…
and boy were we ready to cook!
The Next Chapter
With the help of our parent company, OSM Investments Limited, we have stepped out in faith and poured our hearts into making this dream a reality. Over the last 2 years, we have saved every spare penny, bootstrapped, prayed, and built with intention, listening to our community‘s needs all along the way.
- The Remote Workers looking for a flexible work space away from the distractions of home;
- The Startup Founders who are eager to connect with like-minded peers;
- The Facilitators who want a space to train, mentor and host networking events regularly;
- The Creatives who want a dedicated desk and private studio so they can focus on their craft;
- And finally, Young People who aspire to build businesses of their own in Samoa.
We are excited to announce that Onelook Studio’s event space, meeting rooms, and facilities have been fully transformed into the first coworking space + creative studio in Samoa — the dream has come full circle.
Sign up for a membership today and join a growing community of leaders, innovators and creatives based in Samoa.
Our Vision
To be leaders in the service industry who are committed to excellence and trusted relationships.
We are a HUB for inspiration and innovation:
Collaborate and co-create solutions with coworking members from diverse industries.
We are a HIVE for trailblazers and pioneers:
Connect with local leaders, entrepreneurs, consultants, and creatives.
We are a HOME out-of-the-box ideas and stories:
Catalyse change within your organisation and community using fresh insights.
Our Mission
To impact people and communities with innovative and inclusive services and solutions.
Our Team
We cultivate an environment where people can do their best work by creating opportunities for chance encounters and meaningful collaboration. With a membership you will get access to our dedicated team – local and international cheerleaders, coordinators and creatives – who are ready to support your business or program needs in Samoa.
Ma'atautogia Okalani Mariner
Operations Manager (she/her)
Olisana Mariner-Hughes
Business Development Manager (she/her)
Polena Samania
Admin & Events Assistant (she/her)
Ekeroma Aiono
IT Assistant (he/they)
Our Code of Conduct
COMMUNITY-FIRST
We are locally based but globally minded – our services and solutions reflect a commitment to serve people, planet and partnerships, not only profit.
INCLUSIVE
We are a safe harbour that welcomes people from different walks of life; anyone is welcome and anyone can find belonging and camaraderie in our space.
CARE-CENTRIC
We prioritise C.A.R.E in all aspects of our work: Candour, Accessibility, Reciprocation and Equality; mutual trust and respect are non-negotiable.
TEACHABLE
We learn from experience and experts, approaching new challenges with curiosity, open-mindedness, and a teachable spirit.
COMPETENT
We are detail-oriented, forward-thinking and committed to excellence; we do no harm, mean what we say, and do not compromise on quality.
ARTICULATE
We set clear expectations and boundaries, working with stakeholders who appreciate timely, courteous, and honest communication.
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Special acknowldedgement to The Free Website Guys for setting up our website and thanks to GGGI for seed funding through Pacific Greenpreneurs.