To understand how it all happened, let’s start at the beginning: where the idea came from. In 2014, two freelancers (Sedat Adiyaman and Manuel Schmalstieg) were each working in a café. They soon noticed that the setting did not help their businesses grow: constant comings and goings, furniture unsuited to a long working day, little chance of meeting other professionals, and so on. One thing leading to another, the two freelancers met and found they were not the only ones with these needs. That is when the idea of Coworking Neuchâtel was born.
The road to success
Having an idea is good, but the hardest part is still to come: the project has to be built from A to Z!
You start by defining the themes and the questions, then the specifications. If you are looking for a book to guide you through your own project, we recommend Faire. Written by Sedat Adiyaman and Manuel Schmalstieg, it is full of practical exercises (in French).
- Decision and communication: the two entrepreneurs set up their website to start communicating online.
- Brainstorming: as you have probably guessed, this is where we come in. In 2014, we organised a brainstorming evening to generate ideas in a structured way. For a session like this to work, it has to be planned and given objectives. So we brought together some fifteen participants in a bar in Neuchâtel. The aim was to understand their needs, gather data and explain the concept of coworking, which was still little known in the region. Thanks to this well-organised session, we obtained useful information such as pricing and logistical preferences.
- Prototype number 1: when creating a project, every company goes through the stages of Design Thinking, one of which is prototyping. So we organised a day dedicated to it with the Coworking Neuchâtel team, where interested people could test the idea in practice. The aim, of course, was to get feedback, see whether the concept worked and better understand how to adapt it to people’s needs. The team soon realised there was still work to do, especially on communication. The step was far from useless: we gathered enough data to see that the potential was there.
- Prototype number 2: don’t worry, we stopped at two rounds of prototyping, although your own project may need more. For this step, remember one thing: the prototype should closely resemble the final product or service. For Coworking Neuchâtel, that meant a prototype meeting the criteria of a real shared space while taking into account the feedback from the previous steps. The results showed that people liked coworking, but that awareness campaigns were still needed: people had to see the benefits.
- Launch: now things got serious. The two entrepreneurs opened a test space to better understand its medium-term viability.
Results
After the effort comes the reward, or rather the positive results. Coworking Neuchâtel had been officially open for six years when this case study was written. The idea of two freelancers was a good one, but that is not all: their energy and collaborative spirit enabled them to meet many challenges and found a unique company and association. Coworking Neuchâtel Sàrl employs three people and manages more than 400 m² of offices, meeting and conference rooms.
What is the secret?
How did two young people with an entrepreneurial spirit manage to launch this project? Are there methods that help? To found your own company:
- Stay positive
- Know how to collaborate and encourage co-creation
- Prepare the stages of Design Thinking carefully
- Share your ideas with others: you never know who will help them grow
