July 21, 2009 at 11:05Perspectives of coworking in St. Petersburg
Hey. My name is Alexey Glazkov, I am the ideologist of coworking in Yekaterinburg and the organizer of the Tower co-working club . If you will, then I will lead the story on my behalf.
Petersburgers, attention! :)
As planned, from July 6 to 12, my wife and I spent in St. Petersburg. Before that, I warned all the local coworkers about whom I knew that I would try to meet and exchange experiences. 3 people responded. All 3 meetings turned out, and the result of the trip was, IMHO, more significant than I expected.
Existing coworking offices
During the stay, I managed to meet the 3 most interesting coworking enthusiasts in St. Petersburg. Meet and remember them:
Boris Umitbaev, “StartUp Place” (+7 911 936-04-44)
office.munga.ru/startupplace/info
startupplace.ru
Boris is an entrepreneur in the field of Internet business. At some point, his team needed a permanent place for training and work - and the coworking turned up successfully, allowing cheaply renting a good large room. Naturally, for Boris this is not a business.
The place is honestly excellent. Very close at hand - the metro (for Peter this is critical), cafes, a park area. In the office there are comfortable desks and armchairs, office equipment, personal left-luggage offices, a cooler with tasty water, telephones, and cool 16 Mbps Internet. Part of the room is separated under the gazebo. In a nearby office, a team of lawyers will help if anything.
Cost - 4000 r / month. Only 12 places, while it seems there are free.
Of the minuses - the wall decoration is not completely completed, there is nowhere to put sofas, and round-the-clock access is not yet possible. But this is not particularly critical. In general, let's all to Boris!
Evgeny Boraev, “UnionStars” (+7 904 339-57-55)
office.munga.ru/union_stars
Evgeny is a web developer. The idea of coworking has been taking him for a long time, especially the idea of virtual coworking, which would allow to unite all offices in the CIS into one more or less solid structure. Now “UnionStars” is in the process of selecting a new premises, as the former will need to be vacated by September.
When the premises are found (I think this is a matter of several weeks), Eugene will restore the previous structure there: a free atmosphere, convenient workplaces, Internet from 4 Mbps, all other services like office equipment, kitchens and other things.
It is assumed the presence of 10-20 places., Worth 4000 r / month. And if you help Eugene now - there will be no minuses in the office! This is the main advantage of active participation in the creation of coworking: it is possible to do everything exactly the way you want.
Evgeny Matrosov, entrepreneur (+7 921 949-08-85)
Evgeny is the owner of his own premises, who likes the idea of coworking. See what that means? That's right: the cost of renting a place can be extremely low, walls and floors can be painted / laid as you like, jobs can also be arranged and decorated for every taste ... And also - free round-the-clock access, own kitchen / toilet / shower, Internet from 4 Mbps / s and many other goodies.
Minimal repairs have already been made in the room: you can work there, but there is still room for creativity. Nearby there is a metro (5-10 minutes walk), cafes, parks. Another plus: literally in the next entrance is the regional police station, where Eugene used to work as an investigator. So you can forget about security problems.
I hope that in St. Petersburg there is a man who takes the opportunity and seizes on this opportunity - as we once did. The cost of space for this room will be a maximum of 4000 r / month, and only 20 people can comfortably work here.
***
In general, in St. Petersburg there is a choice. Take places with Boris - and immediately to work, without being distracted by non-core problems. Or - help Eugene, if not scared to spend a little time, but then set everything up completely for yourself. Well, if you really want absolute freedom - raise your own coworking center, with blackjack and more !
You also have an office, but I missed you? Well, either you did not shine on Habré, Munga and on the whole network (then write, I will definitely add you to the article), or you have more expensive places than 5000 tr (IMHO, this is not coworking, so it’s not interesting for me).
Prospects for coworking in St. Petersburg
Purely subjective, it seemed to me that Petersburgers are quite inert, compared with the same Ekb. But this is a good inertness, from the “hurry slowly” category, when speed is not paramount, but the accuracy of the execution of the plan. I think the specifics of the tourist industry is having an effect: foreign tourists bring significant income to Peter, so all the important things have to be done wisely, attentively and, undoubtedly, with beauty.
I must say that I tried to travel around the outskirts, rummaging around the entrances and courtyards. In the historical center, of course, much is hidden from view. Well, everything is clear here too: well yards, the cost of a house / office with a view of the Neva is 2-3 times more than without it, there are practically no normal grocery stores, but there is a huge abundance of cafes, pharmacies and souvenir shops. Prices are on average 20-30% higher than in Ekb. All this also needs to be taken into account.
I think I will not be mistaken if I say this:
1) coworking has great potential in St. Petersburg, but the approach “for the sake of money” will not go here either : the cultural capital is still not used to preying on “its” people (there are tourists for this)
2) a coworking office can be on any outskirts if there is a metro station nearby: in St. Petersburg this is an extremely convenient form of transport, unlike Ekb or Msk
3) there must also be a park, a canal, a fountain somewhere or all at once : in such a beautiful city it’s just silly to sit in a dirty and boring place
4) ideal coworkers for St. Petersburg - probably IT-specialists : the best brains of Russia are concentrated in St. Petersburg (seriously)
5) the cost of renting a place is not more than 5,000 rubles / month : the crisis has severely affected the price of St. Petersburg real estate, it is quite possible to keep within the bread and butter
6) no need to save on the Internet : 4Mbps / 270r., 10Mbps / 400r. - pi * dec what penny compared to 1Mbps / 600r. in Ekb
7)there must be round-the-clock access, several sofas, a kitchen, a shower, a toilet : if you save those living “on the other side” of the Neva from thoughts about bridging, this will have a good effect on general karma
8) the best areas of NOT IT business for start-up entrepreneurs - HoReCa , production and sale of souvenirs, any art crafts, small services b2b (IMHO of course, what can you see here in a week)
Something like that.
Next in line are Togliatti and ... China.
Do coworking guys. Fence the crisis together!
Petersburgers, attention! :)
As planned, from July 6 to 12, my wife and I spent in St. Petersburg. Before that, I warned all the local coworkers about whom I knew that I would try to meet and exchange experiences. 3 people responded. All 3 meetings turned out, and the result of the trip was, IMHO, more significant than I expected.
Existing coworking offices
During the stay, I managed to meet the 3 most interesting coworking enthusiasts in St. Petersburg. Meet and remember them:
Boris Umitbaev, “StartUp Place” (+7 911 936-04-44)
office.munga.ru/startupplace/info
startupplace.ru
Boris is an entrepreneur in the field of Internet business. At some point, his team needed a permanent place for training and work - and the coworking turned up successfully, allowing cheaply renting a good large room. Naturally, for Boris this is not a business.
The place is honestly excellent. Very close at hand - the metro (for Peter this is critical), cafes, a park area. In the office there are comfortable desks and armchairs, office equipment, personal left-luggage offices, a cooler with tasty water, telephones, and cool 16 Mbps Internet. Part of the room is separated under the gazebo. In a nearby office, a team of lawyers will help if anything.
Cost - 4000 r / month. Only 12 places, while it seems there are free.
Of the minuses - the wall decoration is not completely completed, there is nowhere to put sofas, and round-the-clock access is not yet possible. But this is not particularly critical. In general, let's all to Boris!
Evgeny Boraev, “UnionStars” (+7 904 339-57-55)
office.munga.ru/union_stars
Evgeny is a web developer. The idea of coworking has been taking him for a long time, especially the idea of virtual coworking, which would allow to unite all offices in the CIS into one more or less solid structure. Now “UnionStars” is in the process of selecting a new premises, as the former will need to be vacated by September.
When the premises are found (I think this is a matter of several weeks), Eugene will restore the previous structure there: a free atmosphere, convenient workplaces, Internet from 4 Mbps, all other services like office equipment, kitchens and other things.
It is assumed the presence of 10-20 places., Worth 4000 r / month. And if you help Eugene now - there will be no minuses in the office! This is the main advantage of active participation in the creation of coworking: it is possible to do everything exactly the way you want.
Evgeny Matrosov, entrepreneur (+7 921 949-08-85)
Evgeny is the owner of his own premises, who likes the idea of coworking. See what that means? That's right: the cost of renting a place can be extremely low, walls and floors can be painted / laid as you like, jobs can also be arranged and decorated for every taste ... And also - free round-the-clock access, own kitchen / toilet / shower, Internet from 4 Mbps / s and many other goodies.
Minimal repairs have already been made in the room: you can work there, but there is still room for creativity. Nearby there is a metro (5-10 minutes walk), cafes, parks. Another plus: literally in the next entrance is the regional police station, where Eugene used to work as an investigator. So you can forget about security problems.
I hope that in St. Petersburg there is a man who takes the opportunity and seizes on this opportunity - as we once did. The cost of space for this room will be a maximum of 4000 r / month, and only 20 people can comfortably work here.
***
In general, in St. Petersburg there is a choice. Take places with Boris - and immediately to work, without being distracted by non-core problems. Or - help Eugene, if not scared to spend a little time, but then set everything up completely for yourself. Well, if you really want absolute freedom - raise your own coworking center
You also have an office, but I missed you? Well, either you did not shine on Habré, Munga and on the whole network (then write, I will definitely add you to the article), or you have more expensive places than 5000 tr (IMHO, this is not coworking, so it’s not interesting for me).
Prospects for coworking in St. Petersburg
Purely subjective, it seemed to me that Petersburgers are quite inert, compared with the same Ekb. But this is a good inertness, from the “hurry slowly” category, when speed is not paramount, but the accuracy of the execution of the plan. I think the specifics of the tourist industry is having an effect: foreign tourists bring significant income to Peter, so all the important things have to be done wisely, attentively and, undoubtedly, with beauty.
I must say that I tried to travel around the outskirts, rummaging around the entrances and courtyards. In the historical center, of course, much is hidden from view. Well, everything is clear here too: well yards, the cost of a house / office with a view of the Neva is 2-3 times more than without it, there are practically no normal grocery stores, but there is a huge abundance of cafes, pharmacies and souvenir shops. Prices are on average 20-30% higher than in Ekb. All this also needs to be taken into account.
I think I will not be mistaken if I say this:
1) coworking has great potential in St. Petersburg, but the approach “for the sake of money” will not go here either : the cultural capital is still not used to preying on “its” people (there are tourists for this)
2) a coworking office can be on any outskirts if there is a metro station nearby: in St. Petersburg this is an extremely convenient form of transport, unlike Ekb or Msk
3) there must also be a park, a canal, a fountain somewhere or all at once : in such a beautiful city it’s just silly to sit in a dirty and boring place
4) ideal coworkers for St. Petersburg - probably IT-specialists : the best brains of Russia are concentrated in St. Petersburg (seriously)
5) the cost of renting a place is not more than 5,000 rubles / month : the crisis has severely affected the price of St. Petersburg real estate, it is quite possible to keep within the bread and butter
6) no need to save on the Internet : 4Mbps / 270r., 10Mbps / 400r. - pi * dec what penny compared to 1Mbps / 600r. in Ekb
7)there must be round-the-clock access, several sofas, a kitchen, a shower, a toilet : if you save those living “on the other side” of the Neva from thoughts about bridging, this will have a good effect on general karma
8) the best areas of NOT IT business for start-up entrepreneurs - HoReCa , production and sale of souvenirs, any art crafts, small services b2b (IMHO of course, what can you see here in a week)
Something like that.
Next in line are Togliatti and ... China.
Do coworking guys. Fence the crisis together!