The days of carefree summer fun are unfortunately well over. And while we would all like to come back to the days when the main concern for the day was to keep in mind that you have to tan both front and back side of our body equally, our work isn't gonna do itself. Even freelancers have to get back to work. Luckily for them, there is something to make their life-work balance much better. 

Coworking for everyone

Last year, my friend who is in the film-making business came to Zagreb for a project. Although originally from Dubrovnik, he had to come here since his colleagues were all in the capital. And I remember him asking me if I knew about any places where he and his colleagues could be undisturbed. They needed a small space with a few desks and the internet connection. My simple answer was, of course, a coworking area. He was happy with my suggestion, to put it mildly. 

Photo Credit: Vanja Šolin/Proces15

The amazing world of coworking

While already pretty popular in the world, coworking is becoming a growing type of entrepreneurship in Croatia. A lot of professionals, creative people, young entrepreneurs and startup founders from different areas of business can exchange their experiences in one place, while also setting up a more sustainable financial plan. If you happen to match the description, you probably already know a thing or two about coworking, but you might not know where to find them in Zagreb. Coworking places in Zagreb are really going to rejuvenate your working experience. You will find yourself surrounded by young people of similar interests and just for that, you never know what might come out of it. To paint the picture of coworking areas more precisely, you could say that they are a form of business incubators which help them grow when the growth is most needed. The important thing to mention about those areas is that they have different set-ups, so I'm going to describe the coworking areas in Zagreb that I like the most and describe the things they offer. To keep up with the news of the coworking world, you can follow the website Coworking Croatia. The thing I like the most about coworking areas is the fact that they look really awesome, as you can see from the photos. I can imagine being really productive in such beautifully furnished rooms. In addition to that, I really think that these places add a bit of class and modernity to the visual impression of Zagreb. 

HUB385

Photo Credit: Luka Kašpar/HUB385

A funny story ties me to the HUB385 since I was sent to attend a conference there a few years back. Since the interest for that conference was too big, they transferred it to Zagreb Fair. And since I was a couple of years younger, and a bit more reckless than now, that information somehow slipped by me and I went to their original location in Petračićeva 4, and of course, I was late to the conference and missed it. You can draw a conclusion out of my story, and it's not that I was reckless when I was younger but rather that HUB385 is more than just a coworking area, it's also a center of innovation and a platform for knowledge exchange and networking for everybody ready to step into the future. 

OffSpace

Photo Credit: OffSpace

Out of all coworking places I explored, OffSpace is probably the one that's trying the most. Besides regular services that an average coworking office offers, the people from OffSpace are happy to send you the mail you receive in your office daily, and they will also send you a scanned copy of any mail you receive during the time you're away on a business trip or on holiday. They also offer the service of 24/7 security and office accessibility. One of the best things that they offer, for me is definitely their virtual office. It's basically hiring a person from the personnel of OffSpace who is going to answer your business calls without the need to hire an extra person for that as well as setting up the special room and telephone line for the same purpose. 

BIZkoshnica

Photo Credit: BIZkoshnica

Directly translated, BIZkoshnica would mean a business beehive which explains a lot. If you ask me, its main advantage is that it's located in the Zagreb center. And unlike the latter, OffSpace, it's a classical type of a coworking office. Its space can be characterized as the boutique coworking area which is a perfect place if you want to work alone or if you would rather like to collaborate with someone as well. 

Zagreb Innovation Center - ZICER

Photo Credi: ZICER

The coworking area that was named the best coworking space in Zagreb by the platform Coworker.com, ZICER is definitely one of the coolest coworking spaces in town. While nothing is ZICER (absolutely sure) in the world of business, your creativity certainly won't be impaired in a place that looks like ZICER does. The interesting thing to say about it is that a startup I talked about in my previous blog (Zagreb Time Travel) was initiated there.

Photo Credi: ZICER

Bunch

Bunch is the coworking office with the coolest name in my opinion. I don't know if it got its name after the controversial western from 1969, "The Wild Bunch" or something else but it definitely always remindes me of it. Although offering a coworking area is not their core business, I think it's perfect for a young freelance designer that wants to be near those more experienced ones and get the chance to collaborate with the masters of the craft, the very creative energy that radiates through the whole "Bunch" area is not to be underestimated. On their website, you can see how creative they really are. Now, that's something else. I think that it would definitely be best if you tried it out for yourself. Sorry for the bad pun but when it comes to learning, I think you can do a bunch there. 

Photo Credit: Vanja Šolin/Proces15

Header Image Credit: Vanja Šolin/Proces15

Author: Tibor Trupec