Meet Dean Payn

People Behind the Space: The Crate

From a handful of borrowed pallets to thriving coworking communities across Auckland and Hamilton, The Crate’s story is one of creativity, grit, and genuine connection. In this edition of People Behind the Space, we sit down with founder Dean Payn to explore how a simple idea, building a better place to work, grew into a vibrant ecosystem of business owners, start-ups, and teams who call The Crate home.

Dean shares how those early days shaped the coworking experience they’re known for today, why hospitality sits at the heart of their culture, and how The Crate continues to champion freedom, collaboration, and growth for everyone who walks through its doors.

Dean Payn, founder of The Crate

The Crate started from a few borrowed pallets and a simple idea. Can you take us back to that moment when it all began?

About six months before The Crate began, I had moved out of my home office, literally one of the bedrooms at home, and taken up three desks inside a mate’s IT company. Not long after, they told me they were hiring someone new and needed the space back. Last in, first out. So I was back on the hunt for somewhere to work.

Every office I found that was willing to share their leftover space felt dark, lifeless, and nothing like the kind of environment I wanted to represent my business. I wanted something that looked sharp, felt energising, and made clients feel confident from the moment they walked in. So I thought, why not create it myself?

You have to remember, this was before coworking had really taken off in New Zealand; it was basically just us and BizDojo back then. I found a small space, about 120 square metres, but I was still running a start-up online marketing business with very little spare cash. So I had a lightbulb moment: build the desks out of pallets and call it The Crate.

That is how it all started, with a few borrowed pallets, a bit of creativity, and a desire to build something better than what was out there.

The Crate Auckland

What was missing in traditional office spaces that made you decide to create your own?

At the time, we were a lean start-up called Online Results, a small digital marketing company. My thinking was simple. If I could sublease some of the space, I could reduce my own rent. And it worked really well.

That practical decision ended up sparking something much bigger. I realised there were other business owners like me who wanted a professional environment without the overheads or isolation. What started as a way to save money turned into the foundation for a thriving business community.

How did that original vision evolve from a small Rosedale space to the thriving communities you now have in Auckland and Hamilton?

When we first started, we had just fifteen extra desks in our office. It was small, but it quickly became a tight-knit community of small business owners who thrived on each other’s energy and entrepreneurial spirit. That sense of connection and momentum created something special.

The demand grew fast. We doubled our space from 120 to 240 square metres, then eventually moved from Omega Street in Rosedale to Constellation Drive, one of the busiest commercial streets on the North Shore, expanding to 700 square metres. Today, The Crate has over 1,000 square metres in Auckland and another 750 in Hamilton.

It has been an incredible journey, driven by community, collaboration, and a shared belief that business is better when you are surrounded by people who lift you higher.

The Crate Hamilton

You often talk about ‘The Crate Family.’ What does that sense of community mean to you personally?

It is funny you ask that, because this community really has become a second family to me. Some of my closest friendships have been formed at The Crate, and I know many others would say the same. These are people I intend to have in my life for a long time.

I think it is important to say that I enjoy coming to The Crate just as much as anyone else. I feed off the energy here. I look forward to catching up with my “mates at The Crate” each week and being part of something that is genuine, supportive, and real.

The Crate Auckland

Hospitality is a big part of The Crate’s DNA. How do you create a workspace that feels both professional and welcoming?

A funny backstory is that as a teenager, I once dreamed of becoming a hotel manager. I never quite made it there, but that passion for hospitality and service never left me.

At The Crate, we have a saying that we are “the boutique hotel of coworking.” It captures everything we stand for. We pride ourselves on incredible service, genuine relationships, and attention to the small details that make people feel seen and valued.

A few ways you see that come to life at The Crate are the beautifully rolled towels in the bathroom, a personal greeting by name as you walk in and when you leave, and sometimes even having your coffee waiting for you, made exactly how you like it.

The Crate Hamilton

You have built businesses around systems and scalability. How does that mindset influence the way The Crate operates day to day?

We live by the principle that what gets measured gets improved. For us, that means making sure everything runs through a system. When something does not go to plan, we go back, review the system, and refine it. This approach allows us to rinse and repeat, and by that I mean making small, consistent improvements in how we deliver what we do for our clients each and every day.

Having strong systems means our team does not have to second-guess things. They can relax, focus on people, and be more customer-centric, which is super important to us. And now with our second location in Hamilton, those systems have been invaluable. We are not reinventing the wheel; we are simply duplicating what has been tested and perfected over the past fifteen years.

The Crate Auckland

What kind of people or businesses do you think thrive most in The Crate environment?

Interestingly, I think just about anyone can find their place at The Crate. We make a real effort to cater to all types of personalities. Some people love being right in the mix, coming along to our social events like Monday Scone Day, Toasty Tuesdays, or Thursday Drinks. Others prefer a quieter rhythm, connecting over a chat in the kitchen or adding a few extra pieces to the community puzzle in their own way.

On a practical level, most of our members are small to medium-sized teams, anywhere from one to ten people. But we also have corporate teams of twenty or more who love the flexibility, the buzz, and the sense of belonging that The Crate offers.

You are passionate about helping entrepreneurs find freedom in their work. How does The Crate support that mission?

We are big believers in giving incredible value back to our members. Our commitment is simple: to deliver at least five times the value of what they pay for a desk. One of the ways we do that is by investing in their personal and business growth.

Every Thursday, we run a networking and training event called The Gathering, where guest speakers share practical strategies to help our members improve the way they do business. It is all about connection, learning, and growth.

Another benefit of being at The Crate is the calibre of people you are surrounded by. We have exceptional businesspeople who are generous with their knowledge and experience. It is not unusual to walk past a meeting room and see a couple of members huddled over a strategy session, helping each other out. That spirit of collaboration is what makes this place special.

And every quarter, we host something we call The Boss’s Sneaky Day Off. It is exactly what it sounds like. If you are the boss, you have permission to take the day off and do whatever you want with it. After all, that is why most of us went into business, for a bit of privilege, a bit of choice, and a bit of reward.

The Crate Hamilton

Looking back, what has been the most rewarding part of growing The Crate from a local experiment into a multi-city community?

Every time I drive past The Crate in Auckland or Hamilton, I get this deep sense of gratitude. I know that one day I will look back on these days and smile, thinking of all the friendships formed, the new businesses created, and the businesses that have become incredible success stories.

We have built what I like to call a hot house for business, a place where people and ideas can thrive faster because of the community that surrounds them. A great day for me is when I see members collaborating or doing business together that simply would not have happened if they had not met at The Crate. That is what makes it all worth it.

The Crate Hamilton

And finally, if you could collaborate with anyone, from a visionary entrepreneur to a creative thinker, who would it be and why?

It would have been an absolute honour and privilege to be in a room with Steve Jobs. He completely reimagined what life could look like, how we connect, create, and communicate. I love that he had no fences and no boundaries around how big or wild his ideas could be. He was willing to dream, to take risks, and to back himself.

Being around people like that inspires me and challenges me to think bigger. That kind of bold creativity and relentless pursuit of excellence is exactly what I want to cultivate at The Crate, a place where people are free to imagine, create, and bring their ideas to life.