zedita: Driving innovation and regional networking
In a former disco in the train station of the small town of Hameln in Lower Saxony, a place has developed since 2021 that advances the vision of innovation transformation in rural areas. The coworking space Zedita is not only a place for creative work, but also a hub for collaboration between different economic and administrative actors.
A crucial element in this successful collaboration is coapp, which enables the user:s to connect and interact. Basti Reh, Head of zedita, gave us an insight into the journey and the role of coapp in their community.
The emergence of zedita
Zedita has its roots in the Weserbergland University of Applied Sciences (HSW). "In 2018, we had the idea of connecting digital transformation with society and business," says Basti Reh. Networking was the key here, he says, and with the support of the university community, this idea was further developed. In 2019, various formats were tried out, including a pop-up coworking to further strengthen the growing community. "The search for a suitable space eventually led us to the coworking space in Hameln's train station," due to the unique atmosphere, the team was eager to revive the former disco. They kept at it and got lucky. Thus, the vision was born to create a coworking event space here, which opened in 2021 as the official Digital Hub of the state of Lower Saxony, despite the challenges posed by the Corona pandemic.
"Currently, we have about 25 freelancers as users, but also partner organizations whose employees could use the rooms for workshops, for example," says Basti. In addition, zedita organizes events on an ongoing basis, and its connection to the university means that lectures and talks also take place here. So how do you network all these people who have direct or indirect access to the coworking space and the associated community?
The role of coapp
"I live in the Hanover region and our space is in Hameln, so of course I've known Hafven and Jonas Lindemann as well as Hardy Seiler for a while, and that's how I found out about coapp," explains Basti Reh. He was immediately won over by the socializing feature of coapp. Since the switch, the team and community have been using the app for internal communication and interaction with coworkers. "Recently, for example, we also held a hackathon for which we used coapp to interact with the participant:s. Coapp has made a significant contribution to networking and communication within the zedita community. Just being able to write to each other personally is totally convenient."
Especially the individual formation of groups is ideal for networking among each other, he says. The close connection to the university is reflected here in the coapp user base. Both students and individual professors are part of the community and use the platform for collaboration and communication. However, Zedita is mainly aimed at freelancers and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and strives to create a creative environment for innovation and idea exchange.
The vision of zedita
Zedita sees itself as an "innovation transfer hub where science, politics and business meet," according to the Space's charismatic director. In conversation, he talks enthusiastically about having taken important steps to make that vision a reality by partnering with the city and county. "Our main goals are to strengthen the innovation ecosystem in the region and to support founders:in." Although zedita is part of a nonprofit organization (the university) and does not pursue a return on investment strategy in the traditional sense, the focus is on supporting startups to drive innovation in the region, he said.
As a white label app, coapp has proven to be a valuable tool to realize this vision. The combination of social media, local online marketplace and event opportunities provides the coworking space with a unique platform for zedita's coworkers, but also for outside interested parties, students or workshop participants to exchange ideas.
Because of their successful communication, zedita's story thus becomes an inspiring example of how coworking spaces in small towns and more rural regions can drive innovative developments. With a versatile communication platform, they are well equipped to continue to promote creative solutions and expand their network.
More about the concept of zedita
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