News
KiosK office: opening of the first cross-border co-working space in Europe
March 2015
Starting in January 2015, business creation consultancy cooperative START HOP welcomes French-German entrepreneurs to its convivial “KiosK office” spaces at locations in Strasbourg and Offenburg, helping them to develop their market with a 360° view.
Engaged in the cross-border economy, START HOP offers a range of services to this dynamic community: events, consultancy and networking.
The KiosK office is intended to be a working and meeting place for the cross-border economic network. It is a venue for workshops and courses on the French-German market, and provides innovative bilingual services. Project cafés* and thematic after-work events are organised regularly in the French and German spaces in order to strengthen the links across the border between entrepreneurs.
This cross-border space is intended for mobile entrepreneurs and workers who need freedom and flexibility: business creators, start-ups, freelancers, salespersons, microbusinesses, etc. A total of 30 places are available for a day, a week or six months. The KiosK office also enables French and German entrepreneurs to immerse themselves in a common economic culture and study the market of the neighbouring country.
This action is supported by the Eurodistrict Strasbourg-Ortenau, the Eurométropole Strasbourg, the Maison de l’Emploi et de la Formation and the TechnologiePark in Offenburg. It has been coordinated by the Chambre de Commerce et d’Industrie Région Alsace, the Chambre des Métiers d’Alsace, the IHK Südlicher Oberrhein, and the Offenburg Hochschule and Agentur für Arbeit.
The project, an example of good cross-border practice on the scale of Europe as a whole, is planned to be extended to other territories, as poor knowledge of the ‘rules of the game’ in the neighbouring country is a difficulty encountered by entrepreneurs on all borders, highlighting the inadequacy of the provision of information and guidance for cross-border economic activity.
* Topics covered include: financing, how to develop a customer base, location, French-German differences in web marketing and social networks, creativity and innovation across the Eurodistrict.
