We first met Janan several years ago at our Thanksgiving dinner event, where over fifty people from different cultures, ages, and backgrounds shared a meal in a gorgeous cave in Grandvaux. For us, the goal of that evening, and every TLG event for that matter, was to foster community and create space for connections while enjoying a unique (and let’s face it, delicious) experience. Most guests who come to our events are those who also love meeting new people and forging new connections; which is why we were not surprised to find Janan alongside her partner Lucio, years later, creating a community of their own: Cospire.
Janan and Lucio were both at turning points in their careers. Feeling disillusioned with the corporate world, and thirsty for daily connections with people, they had an opportunity to create their dream job and took the leap. It seemed like the timing was right: they felt the energy of Lausanne shifting–what they described as an “infectious buzz of coolness and originality” evident in the new businesses opening around the city. They felt inspired by the new generation of entrepreneurs and decided they wanted in. They desired to not only be amongst this generation of entrepreneurs, but to create a space for them. And this is where Copsire was born. A community of inspired individuals, who share a space, who share an ethos, who share a desire to grow, to encourage, to learn, to connect, and be productive here in the city of Lausanne.
Janan and Lucio hope for Cospire to become a hub for individuals, entrepreneurs, and startups who see the benefit of working alongside individuals from other sectors and backgrounds. Their ambition is for members to feel excited about working from the space and feel encouraged and supported.
So how is Cospire different from other coworking spaces in the city? Janan and Lucio were intentional about every single decision, big and small: from the design, color palette, and plants to create a welcoming environment to their varied workshop resources (3D printers or electrical welding tools, yep they have them) and their custom Cospire coffee blend from local Lausanne roaster, Ibex. They customized every single square inch of the space in order to create a productive, dynamic, inclusive, and collective space anyone would want to work in, including us!
We also hope that Cospire becomes a platform for our community, where we highlight the amazing projects that our members are working on, foster real connections amongst them through themed discussions, lunch & learns and shared meals as well as opening our space up to the greater community for popup markets, pitch competitions, book clubs, yoga workshops, self-care sessions etc., the options are endless. In the end, it will be the community of like-minded individuals who will define what Cospire will be, we’re here to create the platform that enables the high frequency of creativity, warmth, innovation and positive energy to thrive.”
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Meet the Founders:
Janan, Co-Founder/CEO
I am American but moved to Switzerland about 15 years ago for university. I’ve always stood out, I’m a tall African-American female with an Arabic name living in Switzerland, so diversity and inclusivity were extremely important elements for me while creating Cospire. It is really important that we created an inclusive space that was welcoming, international and dynamic.
Lucio, Co-Founder/Strategist
Ciao lettori!! I am Lucio and I grew up in the Italian speaking part of Switzerland. Since early on I had to adapt to being a cultural minority in my own country and I guess this sparked my interest to learn about other languages and cultures. Since the age of 18 I have lived in non-Italian speaking parts of the world and eventually landed in the Lausanne region where I co-started a technology startup which aimed to make smart glasses an everyday object. Our dream never happened as the company that acquired us decided to shut down the project 6 month from product launch. Anyway, Corporate drama and politics are not for me and we decided to combine our forces and launch Cospire, our current (ad)venture.
Monday-Friday, 9-18h for visitors and members have 24/7 access. Visitors can come during their opening hours or email at: hello@cospire.work to schedule a tour of the space or book a day trial.