Episode Summary

"You got to be crazy to start a coworking space. Because just as many small businesses, not just in the coworking industry, in all industries, they fail. To start a coworking is to put yourself on the path to failure because it's entrepreneurial journey."

Fanny Marcoux knows something about crazy. She's the host of “A very special coworking”, a podcast that has quietly become the most diverse collection of coworking stories on the internet. Thirty-six episodes deep, spanning three continents, featuring everyone from solo community managers to operators running thousands of members across multiple locations.

This isn't your typical coworking conversation. Fanny's developed a deceptively simple framework — past, present, future — inspired by Christmas ghosts, of all things.

Five questions that reveal the true story behind every space. What emerges isn't the polished startup narrative we're used to hearing. It's the messy, human truth of what it actually takes to build community.

Bernie caught up with Fanny to explore what she's learned from cataloguing these stories. The conversation winds through a Serbian town where a tech company saved a failing coworking space, the difference between community and networking (spoiler: it's messier than you think), and why the most interesting coworking stories often come from the least famous operators.

There's also the story of Željko from Inspirahub — a tale of failure, persistence, and unexpected partnership that perfectly captures why coworking operators need each other more than they realise. Plus, a frank discussion about why event planning in coworking spaces feels like organising a party where everyone says they'll come and nobody shows up.

This is for anyone who's ever wondered if their coworking story matters, felt isolated in their community-building journey, or questioned whether there's space for diverse voices in an industry that sometimes feels dominated by Silicon Valley narratives.

You'll leave knowing exactly where to find the coworking community that's been waiting for you all along.

⏱ Timeline Highlights

[01:19 ] "What I would love to be known for is... getting it to get more known, more popular, and to share the stories"

[03:27 ] Why the LinkedIn coworking group works: "That's where a lot of conversation is happening about coworking"

[05:29 ] Fanny reveals her Christmas ghosts framework: past, present, future questions inspired by A Christmas Carol

[09:58 ] The Željko story begins: A Serbian coworking space that failed, persisted, and found salvation through local partnership

[11:14 ] "He was thinking about closing it again. Then he had a partnership with a local business, a big company in Serbia"

[13:48 ] "In a smaller town, it really is [a hub] because that's the one place that people can gather to work together"

[16:10 ] "When I started, I expected that coworking was doing a lot of good... But now I know that it's a crazy story as well"

[17:47 ] Bernie's killer question: "When someone says to you, Fanny, I'm thinking of starting a coworking space, what do you want to scream at them?"

[19:14 ] The difference between coworking and shared office: "It's really about gathering people to do deep work, to do some social events. It's really about the community"

[21:50 ] The event planning paradox: "People ask for those [events]. So you're like, okay... but when I organise them, no one's showing up"

[24:57 ] "I want to explore and discover them all. I thought at some point I wanted to interview all the coworking managers or their"

[26:35 ] Fanny considers rebranding to "A Very Crazy coworking" because "it's crazy out there"

[29:17 ] "When you put yourself in their shoes, it's difficult when you start, you don't know where to go, you don't know who to ask"

The Crazy Truth About Starting Coworking Spaces

Fanny doesn't sugar-coat what she's learned from 36 conversations. Starting a coworking space is "putting yourself on the path to failure" — not because the idea is bad, but because entrepreneurship is inherently risky and coworking adds layers of complexity most people don't anticipate.

Her advice cuts straight to the bone: "Are you sure? Have you talked to other coworking managers?"

It sounds almost dismissive until you realise she's trying to save people from the isolation that kills most spaces. The operators who succeed aren't necessarily the ones with the best business plans. They're the ones who found their tribe early.

The Serbian story of Inspirahub illustrates this perfectly. Željko tried the lone wolf approach twice — failed both times. Success only came when he found a partner who understood that supporting the local community wasn't just nice to have, it was essential infrastructure. The company name is Inspira Group, and together they created something that's now thriving five years later in a bigger location.

This isn't just about business partnerships. It's about recognising that coworking, especially in smaller towns, becomes genuine civic infrastructure. When you're the only place people can gather to work together, hold events, and cross-pollinate ideas, you're not just running a business. You're stewarding something bigger.

The Christmas Ghosts Framework for Better Conversations

Fanny's five-question structure sounds simple until you realise how deliberately designed it is. Three questions covering past, present, and future. One open-ended question: "Is there anything else you want to talk about?" One practical closer: "What's the best way to contact you?"

The genius is in what she doesn't ask. No credentials recitation. No elevator pitch requests. Just the human story of how someone got here, what they're building now, and where they're headed. The Christmas Carol inspiration gives her a narrative spine that guests can follow naturally.

Bernie's approach is more instinctual — he follows curiosity wherever it leads. But there's something to be said for Fanny's structure. When you're talking to operators from different continents, languages, and contexts, having a reliable framework means you can focus on listening instead of thinking about what to ask next.

The "anything else" question consistently produces the most interesting content. It's where guests share the thing they came to talk about but weren't sure how to bring up. It's also where the real personality emerges, unguarded and unscripted.

Why Event Planning Feels Impossible

One of the most relatable moments in this conversation is Fanny describing the coworking event paradox. Members ask for events. You plan events based on their feedback. Nobody shows up. Rinse and repeat until you question everything you know about community building.

This isn't a failure of programming. It's a feature of how human connection actually works. People want the option of community more than they want to be obligated to it. They want to know events exist, that there's a place to go if they need it, even if they never actually go.

Understanding this changes how you approach event planning. Success isn't measured by attendance. It's measured by the sense of possibility you create. The regular who finally brings their friend to something. The shy member who starts staying for coffee after events end. The spontaneous conversations that happen because people know there's usually something going on.

Bernie's story about the English woman in Singapore captures this perfectly — sometimes people come to coworking spaces precisely because they don't want to talk to anyone. That's valid too. The skill is creating spaces where both kinds of people can coexist.

Finding the Stories That Don't Get Told

What strikes you about Fanny's guest list isn't who's on it — it's who isn't. No parade of unicorn founders or venture-backed franchise operators. Instead: community managers in tiny spaces, first-year operators still figuring things out, people running virtual coworking communities without physical spaces.

This diversity isn't accidental. It's strategic. The stories that don't get amplified are often the ones that reveal how coworking actually works in the real world. Not the sanitised case studies designed for conference presentations, but the messy human reality of trying to build something sustainable while keeping your sanity intact.

When Bernie talks about wanting more "rest of the world" perspectives, he's identifying the same gap. So much of the coworking conversation is European and North American-centric, but some of the most innovative community building is happening in places that don't get covered by the usual media.

Fanny's geographical organisation — Americas, Europe, Asia — acknowledges that context matters. What works in London might not work in a Serbian town. What makes sense in Singapore might be irrelevant in rural Canada. But the underlying human challenges remain surprisingly consistent.

The LinkedIn Group That Actually Works

Throughout this conversation, both Bernie and Fanny keep circling back to the LinkedIn coworking group. Not because it's perfect, but because it's functional in a way that many online coworking communities aren't.

The difference seems to be that it's a closed group, not the whole internet. People feel safer being honest about their struggles. The conversations feel more like professional development than content marketing. And crucially, several podcast hosts use it to share their episodes, creating a feedback loop of stories and discussions.

This is worth studying. Most online communities die because they become either echo chambers or broadcasting platforms. The LinkedIn group works