Lecture of Massimo Carraro (founder of the Cowo® Network) to the students of Politecnico di Milano (march 10th 2023).

1. Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni
Urban planning and Policy design
Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City
Milano, 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
Any questions?
A talk with Massimo Carraro
founder of Rete Cowo
10 March 2023

2. Massimo Carraro
Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni
Urban planning and Policy design
Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City
Milano, 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
Who is Massimo Carraro and what is Rete Cowo?

3. Massimo Carraro opened the 1st Coworking space of Italy,
on Apr. 1st 2008
Since then, he developed a Network project, for subjects
willing to activate a Coworking space within their own activity
(be it an of
fi
ce, a company, a studio)
He called it "Cowo" and registered it as a trade mark.
Eventually, over the years, such activity would become his job;
this way he became a Coworking entrepreneur.
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
Who is Massimo Carraro and what is Rete Cowo?

4. Rete Cowo is now, 15 years after its foundation,
a Network of 100+ Coworking spaces all over Italy
and Switzerland (Canton of Ticino)
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
Who is Massimo Carraro and what is Rete Cowo?

5. Coworking in Italy since 2008
But what do we speak about when we speak about Coworking?
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl

6. Coworking for us is more than sharing a space
It's sharing the workday with people you know and appreciate
It's attending a place where you're not alone
It's working in a framework of mutual assistance
It's belonging to a community, on a professional and human level
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
But what do we speak about
when we speak about Coworking?

7. Coworking in Italy since 2008
It all started in Milano. Why?
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl

8. Milano is where the Coworking idea blossomed in Italy, in 2008
It's where the City Council openly shared its views about it
It's where some unaware innovators invested their resources
It's where the 1st Italian Coworking space opened its doors (Apr. 1, 2008)
It's where the
fi
rst Coworking brand of Italy was conceived
It's where the City Council helped the community to develop, by
means of economic support + mapping the players
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
It all started in Milano. Why?

9. Coworking in Italy since 2008
Milano gave us birth... but where exactly in Milano?
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl

10. In the Lambrate neighbourhood, for some good reasons
the space was born out of necessity, not out of planning
we used our own of
fi
ces (marketing agency)
we joined forces with local initiatives (FuoriSalone)
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
Milano gave us birth... but where exactly in Milano?

11. Coworking in Italy since 2008
How did we build a national Network?
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl

12. Organically, not seeing Coworking merely as a business activity
Our aim has been, primarily, to get together and become
relevant as a new way of working
We focused on relations rather than pro
fi
ts (remember: Cowo is
not a Company, but a Network)
We tried to foster a networking culture, as the early "founding
fathers" of Coworking taught us
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
How did we build a national Network?

13. Coworking in Italy since 2008
What about the business model?
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl

14. Well, no business model
Actually, very little business was involved in the early stage
We found out that many people - on the space-owners side -
were interested mostly in opening up their professional vision,
by meeting different professionals
Coworking gave them the platform to do so
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
What about the business model?

15. Coworking in Italy since 2008
What services does Rete Cowo provide to af
fi
liates?
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl

16. Cowo provides a full "Coworking Kit" for a plug+play approach
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
What services does Rete Cowo provide to af
fi
liates?
All things bureaucracy (contracts, insurance...)
Consultancy on pricing, space organization,
commercial strategies
Business Plan
Training courses, one-to-one coaching
Customer care, general assistance, problem
solving
Communication channels, marketing
strategies, advertising campaigns
Events
Press of
fi
ce
Content creation
Merchandising
Brand

17. Coworking in Italy since 2008
What is the value proposition of Coworking by Cowo?
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl

18. The Cowo Manifesto
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
What is the value proposition of Coworking by Cowo?
1.
Coworking is just a word. Only real people give it
meaning
2.
We make work a better experience, through space/
experience sharing, everyday
3.
Coworkers are not customers. Coworkers are
professionals working with you
4.
We are part of a larger community, both physical and
online, and we speak to each other
5.
In our model, relationships come
fi
rst, pro
fi
t comes
second
6.
Our professional skills are constantly enriched by
community
7.
We don't believe in competition. This makes us highly
competitive
8.
Coworking enjoys the best marketing strategy:
happiness
9.
Coworking is always the beginning of something
10.
"Coworking is a labour of love" cit. Tara Hunt

19. Coworking in Italy since 2008
What is the inspiration behind the Cowo Network idea?
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl

20. San Francisco, 2005
The founding fathers
of Coworking:
Brad Neuberg, Chris Messina,
Tara Hunt
Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
What is the inspiration behind the Rete Cowo idea?
Link video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeJR3biNW94

21. Massimo Carraro | Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle Costruzioni | Urban Planning and Policy Design | Eu Policies for Sustainability and the City | 10 March 2023
Creative Commons License: BY - NC - ND | The Cowo® brand is a visual and verbal trademark owned by Monkey Business/advertising in the jungle srl
Coworking in Italy since 2008
Thank you!
Massimo Carraro
max@cowo.it
www.Cowo.it
linkedin.com/in/massimocarraro