Meet a person behind Twitter. Inspiring co-workers from HUBa in Tabačka Kulturfabrik

Last week, we were interested not only in HUBa Coworking but also in the creative people who call it their workspace. Read the inspiring stories of seven coworkers who decided to pursue their dream careers. One of them is working with the University of California, Berkeley and has worked for Twitter, another one is a successful game developer who has recently moved back to Košice and there is also a young designer, who quit her job to start her own business. Your Invisible Hotel booking gives you a chance to visit HUBa for free and meet them all in person.

Daniela Hlinková / architect

“Architects can’t spend all day talking to each other. It takes some time but once you get to know other people at the coworking space, you become a member of a community. Everyone is working on something different and that inspires others. Being an architect means that your PC is your closest friend (laughs), which is why being here and communicating with other people from other walks of life is so important. I don’t even mind the noise, people talking to each other or having Skype calls, it’s very lively in here. I enjoy working with Matúš and Roman, my colleagues from the XXXXX studio. It was a great idea to infiltrate this place.”

Lukáš Bičuš / software developer

“My name is Lukáš and I am a software developer, currently working on the CleverAIM project. After six years of working for a corporation, I realised that I was not growing anymore and I felt trapped. I was thinking about what to do next and the first thing that came to my mind was that I should be learning new things. The first conference about the React framework that I went to is where I met a group of guys. We talked, had a couple of beers and they said: “You’re exactly what we’re looking for, let’s work together.” At the time, I had no idea what coworking was, so I went and spent one day working at HUBa. I really liked it and decided to take three days off at work, set up my environment and helped the guys fix some simple things. I enjoyed working with them and that’s when I thought, OK, I’m leaving my job to work here. Four days was enough to completely change my life.

Coworking is not only about working with interesting people but also in an interesting space. In addition to my freelance work, I’m also the president of the Toastmasters Košice club. This coworking lets us use their space and organise meetings of about twenty people who want to improve their speech and leadership skills.”

Stano Džavoronok, engager

“I work for Xfive company (former XHTMLized), which I co-founded twelve years ago. It has since become one of frontend development leaders and gave rise to several companies that work on similar projects. Currently, about 50 developers work for us in many countries, mainly in mobile applications, frontend and WordPress development. We’ve contributed to Twitter’s success by taking part in the development of their user interface. Our projects also include the FOX TV station’s production, namely such shows as Bones, Prison Break Hell’s Kitchen, American Idol and The X-Factor. Currently, I’m working with the University of California, Berkeley on developing a product for American universities.

I spent ten years working from home, making my own rules but lacking in communication with others. Then I decided it was time to go out and look for new ideas and inspiration, meet people who do other things. Other people inspire you and you, in turn, inspire them, it’s mutually beneficial. We might even come up with a brand new HUBa-based project.”

Martina Galliková, interierior designer

“I’m the newest addition to this coworking community. Last September, I left my job, travelled for a while and then decided to start my own business, an interior design brand called ‘Útulno’. My goal is to create my own cosy, authentic interiors that reflect the personalities of those who live in them. I like combining old things with new, modern environment and I’m not afraid of unusual ideas and blending of styles. For each of my interiors, I create posters that are either inspired by my ideas or by the owners themselves. I’ve been sharing my work on my blog and I’m hoping to start an e-shop soon to sell my own products that I believe have been missing here.

I joined this coworking to avoid the isolation of working from home. Since I’ve always liked Tabačka, when I heard about HUBa I realised this could be the right choice for me. I really enjoy the company of the many wonderfully creative people from all paths of life, including design, architecture or IT. HUBa is a very relaxed, open-minded and dynamic community and the best workplace I’ve ever had.”

Marek Tušan, designer

“I work for an Irish company, developing educational and interactive apps for children. I lived in Ireland for eight years but always wanted to return to my hometown. When I first learned about HUBa, I wasn’t even looking for any coworking space but for people working in my field. It was through one game designer’s LinkedIn profile that I discovered HUBa’s website and thought well, this could be a nice place to work when I’m back in Košice.”

Roman Račko, architect

“I’m an architect, working for Matúš Človieček on houses, apartment buildings and architectural projects in general. My colleagues Matúš and Danka work here with me, Danka and I even share the table, which is great. In fact, this is our company’s headquarters. We enjoy working with other people, who are not architects but interior designers, developers and so on and being able to talk to them about many things, not just architecture. Whenever I’m working on a project, I’m always happy to hear their opinions and get feedback, which helps me to think outside the box of my profession.

This place is also great for our clients. We can discuss our projects over lunch or a cup of coffee. We also have the internet and printers here and whenever we need to print something bigger, all we need to do is go to the print shop next door.”

Boris Kriško, coworking manager

“Together with Matúš, I take care of the day-to-day management of HUBa. In addition to that, I’ve done many other things here and cooperated with almost everyone. When I joined HUBa in April, I was doing copywriting and 3D modelling for Martin, who no longer works here. In summer, I was helping the guys from MORE Košice with their project and in September, we started a personal data protection company with Tomáš, although I later quit that project. Now I’m focusing on the coworking itself. We’ve decided to develop HUBa further and maybe even start new coworking spaces, with the help of CIKE’s Escalator programme.”

Would you like to meet these inspiring people and hear their stories? Book a room in The Invisible Hotel at invisiblehotel.sk and get a table at HUBa Coworking for free.